A new study in the United Kingdom found that people who feel lonely and do not often see other people may have fewer healthy years in their lives. The researchers looked at the health records of 277,489 adults between 40 and 69 years old. At the start of the study, these people did not have any serious illnesses like diabetes, cancer, or mental health problems such as depression.

The main reason for this study was to learn how loneliness and social isolation affect health. Social isolation means not having much contact with other people, for example, living alone or not seeing family and friends often. Loneliness is the feeling that your relationships are not close or meaningful, even if you talk to others often.

The researchers found that women who felt lonely and were isolated could expect almost four fewer healthy years by age 50 compared to those who were not lonely or isolated. For men, the difference was almost six years. The study shows that people who are both lonely and socially isolated are more likely to lose healthy years in their lives.