Researchers at the University of Chicago and the University of California have discovered that loneliness triggers genetic changes which cause illness and early death.
The researchers found that loneliness affects the production of white blood cells. It also increases activity in genes which produce inflammation in the body while lowering activity in genes which fight off illness, promoting high levels of inflammation in the body, The Telegraph reports.
According to the study, people who are lonely had a less effective immune response and more inflammation than people who are not lonely.
The researchers warn against living a lonely life as the “danger signals” activated in the brain by loneliness ultimately affects the immune system.
The research was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
S.O.Z