Why Social Interaction Can Be Good For Your Health

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According to recent studies performed by a team at Brigham Young University, and a report made by MSNBC, a lack of healthy relationships may be more detrimental to your health than being obese. In fact, it has been shown to be as harmful as smoking 15 cigarettes per day or living a totally sedentary lifestyle without an ounce of exercise.

A statistic of the study showed that those with strong personal relationships-in the form of friends, a spouse and children-are 50% less likely to die an early death than those without social support. The team at BYU is urging policymakers to look at possible ways to help the population retain relationships to keep everyone healthy.

The woman who led the study, Julianne Holt-Lunstad, said they examined 148 studies that included more than 308,000 participants. Apparently, the negative effects of a lack of social interaction were found to be as harmful to a person's health as being an alcoholic.

The impact that social relationships have on premature death were found to be more significant than whether or not an adult chooses to get a pneumonia vaccination, take medication for their high blood pressure, or avoid exposure to polluted air.

While the factor of internet social interaction was not directly addressed, it has yet to be determined how this kind of digital interaction compares to face-to-face social contact. This is an entirely different topic of debate, since some people support the connections that people can keep with one another thanks to the new technologies of communication.

Others argue that online social media and the invention of texting are eliminating the skills of social interaction in the youth of today. However, this entry is not for the purpose of debating different kinds of social interaction in this technological day and age.

Whether digital social interactions are as beneficial as non-virtual interactions, researchers are not sure why social interaction is such a benefit to a person's health. However, whatever the reasons behind it are, it is clear that isolation decreases the chances of evading illness and early death.

Perhaps it is the innate need humans have to be loved and the associated dangers of being lonely that make relationships so important to a healthy lifestyle. Next time you think that exercising alone and always taking care of yourself is the best, consider calling up a friend to spend some time with you and spread the love.

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Source by Ricky Wang Chan