Loneliness spreads in Germany, health risk

2024-12-17 08:30:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Loneliness is increasingly becoming a problem among young people and can have a serious impact on health. A new survey has revealed that most Germans experience loneliness.

Loneliness is becoming an increasingly serious problem in Germany, according to a new survey conducted by one of the country's leading public health insurers.

About 60% of Germans suffer from loneliness often, sometimes or rarely, according to the survey, which was presented in early December in Berlin by the health insurance company Techniker Krankenkasse (TK).

The study is based on a representative telephone survey of 1,403 people conducted in May by the research institute, Forsa.

Loneliness in youth

It found that loneliness seems to particularly affect young people – of those aged 18 to 39, 68% said they often, sometimes or rarely felt lonely. The issue seems to concern young people even more: 36% of 18- to 39-year-olds said they feel lonely very or fairly badly, while among the 40-59 age group and the over-60 generation, the figure was just 19% and 21% respectively. Speaking at a press conference introducing the report in Berlin (11.12.2024), Janosch Schobin, a sociologist working for the government-backed Loneliness Network, said that this loneliness is often caused by changing life circumstances that are more likely happen at a young age such as leaving home, moving to new cities, and changing jobs.

Singles are three times more likely to feel lonely than those with partners, and although there is no difference between men and women in the intensity of feeling lonely, a partnership does play a role. 33% of singles feel very or quite strongly burdened by loneliness. Among people who have a stable partner, this figure is only 22%.

Loneliness remains a taboo for men

The study found that education level, job or whether people lived in large or small cities were not significant factors in whether or not people were lonely. There was also no significant difference between the number of single men and women.

The main factors that contributed to loneliness are assessed the state of a person's partnerships and social relationships. However, poverty increases the chances of being lonely, and older singles are at higher risk of loneliness than younger singles.

Changing life circumstances is also an important factor: Losing a job and a partner through separation or death often leads to a collapse of social ties and loneliness. But the report found that accepting loneliness continues to be difficult for people, especially men. Only 22% of men experiencing loneliness said they talked about it with other people - compared to 40% of women surveyed.

The main reason given by respondents is that "I didn't want to burden others" with this issue. Some 29% said it was uncomfortable for them to talk about loneliness, while 9% said they had no one they could talk to about their loneliness.

Loneliness is a health issue

Physical and mental illness are also associated with increased feelings of loneliness. Some 23% of people who experience loneliness said they consider their health to be poor – compared to 13% of those who do not feel lonely.

Poor health can lead to loneliness in particular if individual limitations, such as those caused by disabilities, hearing loss or episodes of depression, make it more difficult to communicate with others.

Loneliness appears to be a psychological stressor: Symptoms such as stress and exhaustion, fatigue, low positive mood, sleep disorders and anxiety appear much more often in lonely people. "Loneliness can also lead to physical illness. This is no longer a theory. It has been proven," said Jens Baas, chairman of the board at health insurance company TK, citing links to dementia.

Lonely people also seem to experience general physical ailments more often, including back and stomach pain, breathing difficulties and asthma.

Exactly the link that exists between loneliness and health remains a scientific mystery. "It would be nice if we could explain the connection, but it's not that easy," Baas said. how it works physiologically, we don't know."/ DW