Friday, 10 February 2012
Is loneliness in older people more of a health risk than smoking, as David Cameron’s aide David Halpern has suggested?
WRVS, the largest charity working with thousands of older people believes it is.
"When you live a busy life, full of work, family and friends it is difficult to imagine the impact of extreme loneliness experienced by thousands of older people every day. Our 40,000 volunteers who work with 100,000 older people every month see at first hand the health risks extreme loneliness poses to an older person.
"Extreme loneliness can lead to a loss of confidence, then depression, which can lead quickly to deterioration in physical well-being as a result of not eating and withdrawing further from any social contact. In a practical way extreme loneliness also means physical harm or illness can go unnoticed for too long with the result that it is much more serious than if it had been spotted earlier.
"However there is good news – the prescription for loneliness is relatively inexpensive and achievable, it’s about people helping older people in simple and practical ways, a regular phone call, a chat every couple of days or a lift to get out to the shops, a social club or the hairdressers. Our evidence shows this kind of support can make the most enormous difference to the way someone feels.
"WRVS services such as Good Neighbours, Meals on Wheels, Community Transport and Home from Hospital services, provided by our 40,000 volunteers are one part of the solution to the problem of extreme loneliness, and WRVS welcomes David Halpern lighting up the public debate in this way."
Chief Executive, David McCullough