2023-05-07 08:35:47
An American surgeon said that loneliness is considered a serious epidemic, calling for dealing with the issue of social isolation with the same seriousness with which diseases such as obesity and addiction are dealt with.
Vivek Murthy issued a warning that the risk of loneliness is equivalent to the risk of smoking 15 cigarettes a day, and that it would increase the risk of premature death by 30%.
He added that loneliness can cause health problems for those suffering from diabetes, heart attacks, insomnia and dementia.
According to the BBC, the lack of social contact is also linked to lower academic achievement and work performance.
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Last month, the crew of the “Ted Lasso” comedy series met with US President Joe Biden, in a move aimed at raising awareness of the importance of mental health.
Prior to meeting Biden, actor Jason Sudeikis, who plays Ted Lasso, an American football coach who becomes captain of a British team, was invited to participate in the daily press conference of White House spokeswoman Karen Jean-Pierre.
He told reporters, “Regardless of who you are, where you live, and who you vote for, each of us knows someone who suffered from a psychological problem and felt isolated, anxious and lonely.”
Sudeikis, who was surrounded by other actors from the series, called for more listening to patients and reducing the “stigma” associated with mental health issues.
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This May is Mental Health Awareness Month in the United States.
On the other hand, the Covid crisis has led to an unprecedented rise in depression among the younger generations of French, in a wave that may affect an entire generation, according to a study published by the French Public Health Authority.
The French study was conducted based on questionnaires conducted on about 25,000 randomly selected French people, with a measurement of the frequency of depressive episodes in the population in 2021.
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