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Top 3 messages about the impact of loneliness:
Loneliness can severely impact an older person’s health, not just their wellbeing.
Many factors can contribute to loneliness, but loss and ageism are significant causes for older people.
Experiencing loneliness may leave an older person more vulnerable to elder abuse, which can then make the loneliness worse.
Almost everyone has experienced loneliness at some stage, often for a short time. However, it can be long-lasting (‘chronic’), and older people face particular circumstances that can lead to prolonged loneliness.
Research is now showing that this is not only a personal wellbeing issue, but also a health one – and a factor that can contribute to elder abuse.
‘High-quality social connections are essential to our mental and physical health and our well-being.’ (World Health Organization)
Loneliness and social isolation
Being lonely is not the same thing as being socially isolated. Loneliness is subjective: we’re not satisfied with the gap that exists between the social connections we want to have and the reality of what we do have.
So, what is ‘social isolation’? Is it different to loneliness? Yes: it’s an objective state of having only a small network of contacts and little interaction with other people, according to the World Health Organization (p 2).
A person can be isolated but not lonely, or lonely but not isolated. Social isolation is the amount and quality of contact and interaction we have; loneliness may be what we feel about it.
Older adults and loneliness
3 out of every 5 respondents to a Council on the Ageing (COTA) NSW survey in 2024 reported loneliness, while 1 in 4 reported extreme loneliness. Half of the respondents reported feeling socially isolated.
Of the people who reported loneliness in the survey, 3 out of every 5 didn’t feel valued by society and 1 in 5 did not have someone they could rely on.
What causes loneliness in older people?
Many factors can contribute to loneliness at any age. Some examples are:
family conflict or estrangement
caring responsibilities
geographical isolation
limited access to transport
financial stress
housing insecurity or relocation
disability
language or cultural barriers
low self-esteem
physical or mental illness.
Loss is a significant contributor to loneliness in older people, as COTA NSW identified in its 2024 survey. For many of us, ageing is a time of great transition and change, and it may bring the loss of partners, friends and previous levels of health, independence and mobility. Retirement takes away our workplace social networks, and relocating closer to family or into residential care may mean the loss of a familiar community.
Ageism – a biased, narrow way of seeing people as stereotypes based on age – can also trigger a loss of identity and self-worth that can make us feel lonely. Ageism is particularly common in relation to older people, and it can change how we engage with the world.
Ageism, loneliness and elder abuse
If we experience ageism, we may withdraw from social interaction, trying to avoid another experience. This triggers or increases loneliness, which then leaves us more vulnerable to elder abuse.
Gohar Yazdabadi, CEO of COTA NSW, spoke about this interconnection in a 2026 Elder Abuse Action Australia webinar on ageism,
‘Over the past few years, COTA NSW has undertaken research in both ageism and loneliness among older people’, Gohar said. ‘Ageism really shapes how society views older people … [it] can often push older people into the margins … and contribute to loneliness and isolation.’
She described the relationship between loneliness, ageism and elder abuse as ‘cyclical’:
Ageist attitudes about growing older reduce the value others place on older people.
Older people who feel less valued retreat from social interaction, becoming lonely and isolated.
Their feelings of self-worth decrease further, and they have smaller networks of support.
They become increasingly vulnerable and dependent, with fewer protective relationships and reduced visibility in society.
They are now at greater risk of elder abuse, with less likelihood of any abuse being seen or reported.
This risk and increased vulnerability reinforces their isolation and retreat from ageism.
They’re back at steps 1 and 2 …
In 2024, COTA NSW surveyed over 2,200 New South Wales residents aged 50 and over. The survey report, Voices of solitude: loneliness and social isolation among older adults in NSW, formed part of COTA NSW’s submission to a parliamentary inquiry into the prevalence, causes and impacts of loneliness in New South Wales.
Many other researchers have also reported that loneliness and isolation are risk factors for the abuse of older people, including the World Health Organization (p 5) and the National Elder Abuse Prevalence Study (final report, p 63).
‘Understanding ageism and loneliness helps us understand why elder abuse happens, why it can remain hidden, and what needs to change,’ Gohar said.
The effects of loneliness on health
In addition to increased elder abuse risk, research is finding alarming evidence that loneliness in old age can damage our physical health. One researcher famously compared the health effects of loneliness or social isolation to those of smoking 15 cigarettes a day!
What are the health impacts of chronic loneliness in later life? ‘In older age, social isolation and loneliness increase the risks of cardiovascular disease, stroke, diabetes, cognitive decline, dementia, depression, anxiety and suicide. They also shorten lives and reduce the quality of life’, says the World Health Organization (p 2).
The Australian Institute of Family Studies reported (p 1) that ‘[a]mong the poor health and wellbeing outcomes associated with social isolation are:
decreased quality of life
functional decline
decline in cognitive health and function
poor mental health
poor physical health
increased risk of mortality
low capacity for physical activity and problems with maintaining self-care’.
The reasons why loneliness affects health are uncertain, although the World Health Organization makes several suggestions (p 5). It may be because loneliness is stressful and the older person lacks ‘stress-buffering’ social contact. It may be that loneliness and isolation damage our ‘physiological repair and maintenance processes’ such as sleep. It’s possible that for some older people, loneliness and isolation may contribute to poor health behaviours like skipping medication, smoking or drinking.
Loneliness in older people is serious
Whatever the reasons, it’s clear that loneliness in older people is a serious public health concern and a significant risk factor for elder abuse, as well as a personal challenge.
We can avoid loneliness by doing what we can to maintain strong social connections and seeking help to make it happen. However, increasing community and policymaker awareness of the effects of loneliness, isolation and ageism on older people will make it easier for us to feel valued and safe.
Read more
Understanding and responding to loneliness – Compass article by Relationships Australia
Solving isolation – Compass article by Melanie Joostens
Social isolation: factors, dynamics and effects of isolation for older people – research snapshot by Australian Institute of Family Studies
Ending loneliness together in Australia – white paper by Ending Loneliness Together
The loneliness epidemic: a holistic view of its health and economic implications in older age – Medical Journal of Australia article by Monash University researchers
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