The association between loneliness and depressive symptoms among adults aged 50 years and older: a 12-year population-based cohort study.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Loneliness is experienced by a third of older adults in the UK and is a modifiable potential risk factor for depressive symptoms. It is unclear how the association between loneliness and depressive symptoms persists over time, and whether it is independent of related social constructs and genetic confounders. We aimed to investigate the association between loneliness and depressive symptoms, assessed on multiple occasions during 12 years of follow-up, in a large, nationally representative cohort of adults aged 50 years and older in England.

Methods

We did a longitudinal study using seven waves of data that were collected once every 2 years between 2004 and 2017, from adults aged 50 years and older in the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA). The exposure wa

SUBMITTER: Lee SL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8009277 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature