A report published in ‘Psychology Today magazine’ according to Chinese researcher Wu and group, living alone increases your risk of mental illness and depression by 42% compared to living with others.
In their research, Wu and group cited among others; long-term illness and shame as a result of poverty to be among the major reasons why people were living alone.
For years, similar researches have been conducted all showing the same results. In 2008, a study that included 29 districts from Taiwan indicated that being alone at home has a negative impact on mental health.
Conducted by asking people questions about their age, information about their alcohol and smoking habits, whether they are married or single, education and life background; most of the respondents to the survey who stayed alone had mental health problems.
The subjects were further examined and subjected to various physical tests that included blood tests.
Another study published in 2022 on the ‘Frontiers Psychiatry website’ showed that as days go by, there is an increase in the number of people who prefer being alone.
The study showed that one in three people in Western countries lived alone for reasons including; being single, having separated from their spouse or widowed among others.
Such people were victims of severe depression and mental illness according to the research.
People were advised to seek help from psychological counselors as per the nature of their problems to avoid extreme sadness that can result into depression and other mental illnesses.
