Sleep disorders drive those affected to loneliness and isolation

Bad Sleep leads to loneliness?

Nowadays more and more people feel lonely and alone. Researchers now warned that the world is headed for a potential loneliness epidemic. The experts also found that there seems to be a connection between poor sleep and loneliness.

The University of California scientists found in their current research that poor sleep is related to isolation and loneliness. The physicians published the results of their study in the English language journal "Nature Communications".

When people sleep too little, the likelihood of social isolation and loneliness increases. (Image: Sven Vietense / fotolia.com)

Isolation and loneliness favor an early death

The negative health effects of loneliness and social isolation are associated with rising rates of premature death. When people sleep poorly at night, they tend to retire and avoid social interaction. This can be observed even after a bad night's sleep, say the researchers.

Responses from 18 participants were closely examined

The study looked at the responses of 18 healthy adults, both after a normal sleep and after a sleepless night. The participants watched a video showing a person who kept walking towards them. The subjects were asked to press a button if they felt that the person was getting too close. Under the influence of sleep deprivation, subjects tended to pause the video much earlier (when the approaching person was 18 to 60 percent farther away) than sleepy participants.

How little sleep affected the brain?

The experiment was performed while the subject's brains were being monitored. It was particularly noticeable that a sleep-less brain showed increased activity in an area known to sense human threats. Reduced activity has also been found in another part of the brain that is thought to promote social interaction.

Another test included more than 1,000 neutral observers

The study participants were then recorded and asked to talk about everyday activities. This video was shown to over 1,000 neutral observers. The observers were asked to rate how likely they would interact with the person and how lonely participants would appear to them. The results showed that those who suffered from sleep deprivation were consistently considered to be more isolated and observers less inclined to interact socially with them, the researchers say.

Can loneliness be contagious?

Eventually, the observers were asked to state their own loneliness after watching the videos. The observers consistently reported higher rates of personal loneliness after seeing a video of a sleep-deprived subject. This intriguing result suggests that to a certain extent, loneliness can be transmitted almost as a kind of social contagion that is triggered in a particular person after confronting a person who is lonely himself.

The less sleep people get, the less they want to interact socially. In return, other people will find those affected more socially repugnant, further increasing the serious social isolation effects of sleep loss, says study author Matthew Walker of the University of California. This vicious circle could be a major factor in a public health crisis, namely loneliness, adds the expert.

Loneliness and sociability can be improved by having enough sleep

The study also found that feelings of loneliness and sociability can be influenced by a little sleep. On the positive side, having just one night of sleep enough makes you feel more open-minded and sociable, and in addition, other people want to interact more with you, Walker adds. (As)