Association of Pickleball Participation With Decreased Perceived Loneliness and Social Isolation: Results of a National Survey.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction/objectives

One in four older adults in the United States (US) reports being socially isolated or lonely, leading to increases in the odds of having heart disease, a stroke, and dementia. Physical activity (PA) has many benefits in this population, both physical and psychological. One such type of PA growing in popularity is pickleball. Our objective was to understand the relationship of pickleball participation with perceived loneliness and social isolation among older adults in the US.

Methods

We conducted a national cross-sectional survey of 825 US adults over age 50 years. We compared the effect of 3 levels of pickleball play history (never played (NP); played previously, not currently (PP); and currently play (CP)) on loneliness and social isolation.

Resu

SUBMITTER: Kurth JD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12553873 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jan-Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature