Loneliness, Depression, and Genetics in the Elderly: Prognostic Factors of a Worse Health Condition?

Abstract

Loneliness is considered a prognostic factor for poorer health status in the elderly. It is proposed to analyze the role of loneliness in health status in terms of various factors. A total of 1747 individuals from the pilot survey of the Aging in Spain Longitudinal Study (ELES-PS) were reviewed. ELES is a cross-sectional study for collecting health variables, food habits, socioeconomic data, and cognitive and functional capacities, which was carried out on a Spanish representative sample of noninstitutionalized persons of 50 years of age or older. Moreover, since telomere shortening is associated with cellular senescence, 35 telomere-related SNPs and cognitive impairments were analyzed. The results characterize the “solos” as males of 50–60 years, who were overweight and had lower levels of hemoglobin and neutrophils. There is also an association between five SNPs related to telomere length and BDNF. A group of people with loneliness and depression was identified with poorer health and cognitive status, poorer perception of their quality of life, poorer quality of sleep, and lower physical activity. Therefore, it follows that telomeres and BDNF play a role as intermediaries between loneliness and depression and their relationship with a worse state of health.

Subclinical Hypothyroidism, BDNF, and Telomere Dynamics in T1DM Pregnancy

“…Additionally, higher maternal BDNF levels were associated with increased neonatal telomere length. This correlation aligns with numerous psychiatric studies that have reported a connection between BDNF levels and telomere length [25,26]. This finding suggests a potential link between neurodevelopment factors and telomere biology.…”

Mortality was predicted by depression and functional dependence in a cohort of elderly adults of Italian descent from southern Brazil

“…Characteristics associated with loneliness were also related to depression, such as older adults, males, and among those lacking a partner. Although some studies have found controversial results regarding gender and age, the analysis restricted to the elderly was able to detect a higher prevalence of depression in the elderly of a Spanish population 27 .…”

Loneliness among elderly people as a public health threat

“…Loneliness is a prognostic factor for worsened health and cognitive status in the elderly [22], which is already impaired by the sensory deficits common in old age, especially visual impairment [23]. on the other hand, elderly people with poor health status are also more likely to suffer from loneliness, and any episode of severe illness is likely to exacerbate this; chronic diseases do not have such a pronounced effect [24].…”

“…unfortunately, although the average level of digital literacy among the elderly is still low [29], loneliness increases the risks posed by the Internet [7], such as mobile phone addiction, including sleep disturbances and depression [30]. Loneliness and depression are among the main risks of lower physical activity [22], and obesity is a problem among those older people who use food as a means of escape from stressful states and situations [31]. Paradoxically, elderly people who consider themselves lonely are also at an increased risk of poor nutritional status [32] or even of severe malnutrition [33,34].…”