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It has been suggested that this section be merged into Loneliness#Increasing prevalence. (Discuss) Proposed since April 2024.
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The loneliness epidemic is an ongoing trend of loneliness and social isolation experienced by people in the United States and across the globe.[1][2] The uptick began in the 2010s and was exacerbated by the isolating effects of social distancing, stay-at-home orders, and deaths during the COVID-19 pandemic.[1][3]
In May 2023, the U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy published a United States Department of Health and Human Services advisory on the impact of the epidemic of loneliness and isolation in the United States.[3] The report likened the dangers of loneliness to other public health threats such as smoking and obesity.[4][5] In November 2023, the World Health Organization declared loneliness a "global public health concern" and launched an international commission to study the problem.[6][7]
Even before the pandemic, there was an 'epidemic of loneliness,' and it was affecting physical health and life expectancy.
America has a new epidemic. It can't be treated using traditional therapies even though it has debilitating and even deadly consequences. The problem seeping in at the corners of our communities is loneliness
Loneliness presents a profound public health threat akin to smoking and obesity, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek H. Murthy warned in an advisory issued Tuesday that aims to rally Americans to spend more time with each other in an increasingly divided and digital society.
The World Health Organization has launched an international commission on loneliness, which can be as bad for people's health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day
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