Experiencing loneliness, either temporarily or continuously, during early adolescence may increase the risk of leaving school with poor academic results, developing mental health problems or having a poorer quality of life later in life, a group has found. of researchers at King’s College London (United Kingdom) when analyzing 2,232 people between 12 and 18 years old.
The participants’ level of perceived loneliness was studied and related to their school performance and mental well-being. The results, reported in the journal Development and Psychopathology, have shown that being lonely during adolescence increased the risk of self-harm, poor mental health, compulsive mobile phone use and unhealthy lifestyle choices, such as example consume tobacco, all this in comparison with those who did not feel alone.
The research also found that those who were 18 years old and who had experienced periods of loneliness in the last six years were the most likely to develop mental health problems, such as depression and anxiety, as well as lower levels of life satisfaction and worse sleep quality.
Loneliness can be a harrowing experience
In the opposite case, those who felt lonely when they were 12 years old, but later stopped feeling that way, had a lower risk of negative mental health outcomes later, although they were still more likely to finish school with low grades. The authors believe this could be because early loneliness causes significant disruption, resulting in loss that cannot be recovered without support.
Although there are genetic factors that make some young people feel lonely, there are also key environmental factors, such as a loving home and supportive parents
“Our study shows that loneliness during a person’s adolescence can have a serious impact on later life. In 2018, nearly half of 10- to 12-year-olds reported feeling lonely at least some of the time, with as many as 15% saying they often felt that way. Loneliness, even temporary, can be an extremely distressing experience, and we need to do everything we can to support those in need to get through it,” said Dr. Timothy Matthews, lead author of the study.
Another of the study’s findings revealed that although there are certain genetic factors that make some people more at risk of feeling persistently lonely, there were also key environmental factors, such as having a home full of love and parents who support and positively influence their children.
Therefore, it is very important to intervene early in the cases of young people who feel lonely, especially in early adolescence. To this end, efforts must be made to identify and provide support to all those who need it; In this way many mental problems will be avoided.
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