New York, April 22 (NationPress) A recent study released on Tuesday revealed that middle-aged Americans exhibit some of the highest levels of loneliness, as assessed among tens of thousands of individuals aged 50 to 90 across 29 countries.

The peer-reviewed study, published in Aging and Mental Health, indicates that while loneliness typically increases with age, only in the US and the Netherlands do middle-aged individuals report feeling lonelier than their older counterparts.

Lead author Robin Richardson, a social and psychiatric epidemiologist and assistant professor at Emory University’s Rollins School of Public Health, stated, “Although there is a widespread belief that loneliness grows as people age, the reality in the US is that middle-aged individuals experience greater loneliness than older generations.”

Historically, advocacy and interventions aimed at addressing the loneliness epidemic have concentrated on older adults and adolescents, leaving middle-aged adults as a critical group often neglected.

Loneliness presents a major public health challenge, leading to various physiological, cognitive, mental, and behavioral health issues that undermine quality of life and elevate disease risk.

The research involved data from 64,324 older adults across Europe, North America, and the Middle East, with collaboration from experts at Columbia University, McGill University in Canada, and Universidad Mayor in Santiago, Chile.

Findings revealed that while loneliness tends to increase with age, the extent of this rise varies significantly between countries. For instance, adults in Bulgaria and Latvia reported the most considerable increase in loneliness as they age, while Cyprus and Greece exhibited the highest levels of loneliness among those aged 50–90.

In the US, the prevalence of loneliness among middle-aged adults was markedly higher, a trend only mirrored by the Netherlands.

Factors such as being unmarried, unemployment, depression, and poor health significantly influenced loneliness, but their impact varied across different nations.

For example, in the US, unemployment was the primary cause of increased loneliness among middle-aged individuals, while in other countries, it was more impactful for older adults.

The authors propose that this phenomenon may arise from distinctive social challenges faced by middle-aged adults, including limited leisure time for social interactions due to competing demands from work, childcare, and caregiving for aging parents.

Given the variability of loneliness across different locales and life situations, the authors stress the importance of tailoring health policies and social initiatives to identify which age groups are most at risk in specific contexts.