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Loneliness impacts blood pressure

Lonely people produce more stress hormones which can damage health, according to new report.

The analysis

Researchers at The University of Chicago analysed data from several blood pressure studies. They showed that people who described themselves as lonely had higher blood pressure levels.

In one study the patients who said they were lonely had elevated levels of epinephrine, a hormone that elevates blood pressure and heart rate.

It is thought that people who are lonely may find life's challenges more difficult alone which increases the stress response.

USA Today reported, "Over time, elevations in stress hormones might lead to hypertension, a disease in which pressure in the blood vessels remains dangerously high."

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