[tabi] What do humans need almost as much as food and air?

From: "Chip and Allie Orange" <acorange@xxxxxxxxxxx>
To: <tabi@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Fri, 2 Jan 2015 11:56:46 -0500
Below is some info from an article in a health newsletter.  It's about
social relationships.

 

We all know that most people who are blind are unemployed, and have the
double whammy of they also can't drive to easily be with other people.  This
article points out that it's vitally important for everyone to find some way
of getting around this issue, so you can spend some time with others.

 

If you aren't sure where there are groups of others, think of our local TCB
and NFB chapters; call the Lighthouse to see what groups they have going,
and try the Senior center for the same thing.  Then, start working on your
transportation (ask people here on TABI if you get stuck with the
transportation problem).  The article below makes it abundantly clear why
you've got to work on this as one of your major health issues.

 

Make it a happy new year.

 

Chip

 

 

 

 

Here's a riddle: Other than air, water, sleep and food, what is it that
human adults
need so badly that doing without it is as harmful to health as being an
alcoholic
or smoking 15 cigarettes a day? It is so important to your health that not
having
it is worse for you than being sedentary and is considered twice as
dangerous as
obesity.

It's not sex -- though that may well be a part of it.
It's social interaction, and believe it or not, having strong ties to other
people
is so vital that it actually improves your odds that you'll live for any
given period
of time by 50%!

People Need People

These compelling statistics spelling out the importance of human
relationships were
identified in new research published in the July 2010 issue of
PLoS Medicine
, which analyzed 148 studies involving the social habits of 300,000 people
over an
average of seven and a half years. Until now, the link between lack of
relationships
and risk for death hasn't been widely explored. It was a goal of the
authors, from
the psychology department of Brigham Young University, to produce a review
that is
so comprehensive that the public and medical community both sit up and take
notice.
The researchers learned that social support provides numerous emotional
benefits
that translate into good health and longevity, specifically...
Social connections help people handle difficult and uncomfortable emotions,
including
anxiety and anger.
Friends and family act as helpful naggers -- they tend to encourage healthy
lifestyles
by urging people who aren't healthy to sleep more, lose weight, eat
healthfully,
see a doctor, exercise or quit smoking.
Social relationships provide meaning and purpose in life, and people who
have a purpose
are more likely to take better care of themselves and avoid unnecessary
health risks.

What Are The Benefits?

"Our relationships influence long-term health through emotional and/or
psychological
responses that affect physiological processes," says the study's lead author
Julianne
Holt-Lunstad, PhD, associate professor of psychology at Brigham Young. "The
data
shows us that real or perceived availability of social resources is linked
to lower
blood pressure, better immune functioning and decreased inflammatory
processes for
a number of different diseases." As an example, Dr. Holt-Lunstad cites a
study in
which participants wore a device that measures blood pressure throughout a
24-hour
period -- it showed that people with social support tend to have lower blood
pressure.
However, despite the numerous studies showing that relationships are
associated with
healthiness, the exact mechanisms by which they do so are not clear.

Epidemic of Loneliness

Humans are naturally social, note the researchers, but many aspects of
modern life
lead to isolation. For instance, in our highly mobile society, people often
live
far from all or most of their family members. Many delay getting married and
having
children, and because more people of all ages are living alone, loneliness
seems
to be a growing problem. According to a Duke University study published in
the
American Sociological Review
, over the past two decades, the number of Americans who say that they have
no close
confidantes has doubled -- to 25%.
Increasingly popular technology that keeps us glued to a computer or cell
phone inhibits
development of close personal relationships. Acknowledging that the Internet
may
make it easier to meet people, Dr. Holt-Lunstad said she doesn't believe
that online
interactions can take the place of in-person engagement. For instance,
studies show
that physical touch from a loved one has measurable health benefits,
including pain
reduction and lowered blood pressure. Cancer patients who receive loving
touch from
friends or family members report less fatigue and nausea than those who did
not.

Quality Time

Dr. Holt-Lunstad told me that she's more than once been asked "what about
relationships
that aren't pleasant?"
She said that quality absolutely is important, noting that scientific
evidence does
show that "negative relationships" can hurt our health. Rather than using
that as
a reason to be loners, however, Dr. Holt-Lunstad suggests this is evidence
that we
should work to improve existing relationships in addition to looking for
more opportunities
to develop new ones.
In fact, said Dr. Holt-Lunstad, the quality of relationships is more
significant
than the quantity. "Having even one true confidante or someone you know you
can turn
to when you need a favor is important," she says. "You might have 50 people
around
you and still feel lonely -- we need to go beyond thinking about numbers."

Whatever the cause of loneliness -- a negative perception of yourself or
others,
poor social skills, few social contacts or lack of a confidante -- this is
one "medical
treatment" that can be quite pleasant. Start by calling a friend today!

 

 

 

Source(s):
Julianne Holt-Lunstad, PhD, associate professor of psychology, Brigham Young
University,
Provo, Utah.
http://edhn.bottomlinesecrets.com/a/hBNJWjSB74VNIB8XCgKNFNORvtz/dhn3?email=c
orange@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
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[tabi] What do humans need almost as much as food and air?

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