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Living alone increases your chances of sinking into depression by 80%
Medical expert of the article
Last reviewed: 01.07.2025
Over the past three decades, the number of people living alone has doubled. In the UK and US, one in three people live alone. But it has now been discovered that it is dangerous to mental health. Even for people of working age.
The study of lonely people was undertaken by specialists from the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health. Over the course of seven years, they observed 3,500 men and women of working age, comparing their living conditions, psychological and socio-demographic risk factors, as well as health risk factors ( smoking, alcohol abuse, low physical activity), comparing this information with the subjects' use of antidepressants (data on the use of such drugs were taken from the National Prescription Drug Registry).
It turned out that living alone increases the chances of becoming depressed by 80% for both men and women.
In women, socio-demographic factors account for a third of this risk - for example, lack of education and low income. And in men, depression is promoted by a poor psychological climate at work, lack of support in the workplace or in private life, and addiction to alcohol.
What factors are responsible for half of the increased risk of developing depression remains a mystery. Scientists believe that feelings of social isolation, mistrust, or difficulties caused by critical life events may be to blame. All of these factors need to be studied in detail to understand and reduce the incidence of depression in people of working age.