How can we avoid loneliness and social isolation as we age?
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More than a third of people over the age of 50 feel lonely. And nearly as many feel isolated.
Meanwhile, studies show that being lonely can contribute to shorter lives, cognitive decline, physical deterioration and depression among older people.
MPR News guest host Chris Farrell and his guests talk about how to connect the disconnected.
And, make sure to check out Seeking Connection, a special episode from Call to Mind, an MPR News mental health initiative.
Guests:
Marc Schulz is a professor of psychology and director of the Data Science Program at Bryn Mawr College. He is the associate director of the Harvard Study of Adult Development — an eight-decade-old longitudinal study of thousands of individuals from 724 families. And he is a co-author of the New York Times bestseller, “The Good Life: Lessons from the World's Longest Scientific Study of Happiness.”
Carrie Henning-Smith is an associate professor in the Division of Health Policy and Management at the University of Minnesota where she is also co-director of the Rural Health Research Center and the Rural Health Program.
Subscribe to the MPR News with Angela Davis podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Spotify or RSS.
Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.
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