From the age of forty, women who have quality social and friendly relationships would be less likely to develop chronic diseases thereafter.
- Women who have quality social and friendly relationships are less likely to develop a chronic disease.
- For now, researchers do not know precisely why this link exists.
- One of the hypotheses is that being surrounded encourages people to take better care of their health.
The lack of quality friends or relationships is a risk factor comparable to obesity, lack of physical activity or alcohol consumption for chronic diseases, according to a new study published in the journal General Psychiatry.
Chronic illness: more risk in the event of unsatisfactory social relations
To achieve this result, the authors studied the data of 7,694 women who were between 45 and 50 years old in 1996. Until 2016. They completed questionnaires on their health and well-being, in particular their level of satisfaction with their different types of relationship: love, family, friends and colleagues.
Regarding their health, the researchers specifically monitored the development – potential – of 11 chronic diseases: diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma, osteoporosis, arthritis, cancer, depression and anxiety.
Scientists observed that 58% of participants who had no chronic disease at the start of the study developed one later. “A middle-aged woman with the lowest levels of satisfaction was more than twice as likely to develop multiple chronic conditions as those who were very satisfied with their relationships“, says Dr. Xiaolin Xuone of the authors.
The authors therefore plead for the quality of social relations to also be taken into account in prevention strategies. “Lockdowns during Covid-19 have shown the importance of social connection for health, but global health strategies do not include it as a risk factor for chronic disease, explains Professor Gita Mishra, one of the authors of this study. There is still a lot of research to be done in this area, but in the meantime, women should have diverse and quality relationships.“
Social relationships stimulate women to take care of themselves
But why such a link between social relations and chronic diseases? For the moment, the researchers do not have the answer. But they have assumptions. “A partner can encourage you to have your checkups more often, explains Gita Mishra. Studies have shown that single people are less likely to see their doctor. If you are satisfied with your relationship with your friends, your partner, you are more likely to follow preventive health measures. You exercise together or you eat healthy foods together. It’s company. I think it improves your quality of life.“
Nevertheless, the authors point out that even if you have quality social relationships, this does not mean that you should not pay attention to other risk factors. Thus, to avoid developing one of these 11 chronic diseases, it is recommended to keep a stable weight, to have regular physical activities several times a week and not to drink too much alcohol. According to the recommendations of Public Health Francea maximum of two glasses of alcohol per day should be consumed, not every day, and no more than 10 glasses per week.