DNA accounts for 35% of feelings of isolation - but quality time with friends can outweigh it, twin study finds
Loneliness is written into our DNA, according to a new study. But these genes still respond to the world around us, so your DNA doesn’t necessarily doom you to be lonely, the University of Western Ontario study authors say.
Your DNA explains about 35 percent of your propensity to feel lonely, they discovered.
By studying adult twins, the researchers found that those who have many genetic factors for the personality trait of neuroticism are also more likely to feel lonely.
These factors mean that some people are simply more prone to feel lonely - but finding connections and companionship can still help undo genetic tendencies for isolation.
Our genes account for about 35 percent of our risks for loneliness, according to a new University of Western Ontario study that linked lonely DNA to neuroticism DNA
The so-called loneliness epidemic is not just making people sadder, it also poses dangers to our over-arching health. Social isolation has been linked to higher risks of cardiovascular disease, obesity, diabetes and even death. As social creatures, we have evolved to be at our best around others.
But if you’ve ever felt helplessly lonely in a crowded room, it might be your ancestors’ fault (in part). To be more exact, about 35 percent of our loneliness is explained by our genes, according to the new study, published in the Journal of Research in Personality.
That doesn’t mean that some people are doomed to be lonely while others aren’t.
Instead, you can think about like the growth potential of a plant.
‘It inherits its potential height, but if it gets put in an environment without light, it won’t realize that height potential,’ explains Dr Julie Aitken Schermer, lead study author and a professor of management and organization at the University of Western Ontario.
Similarly, if someone with a predisposition to loneliness is ‘put into an enriching environment, they are more likely to experience loneliness.’ Parsing out the differences between genetic and environmental influences on loneliness is challenging for scientists, and where twin studies come in handy.
Take, for example a pair of twins, who are the exact same age, grow up in the same household with the same people and, depending on whether they are fraternal twins or identical, share 50 percent or 100 percent of their DNA. People are losing that support network because they’re isolating electronically. Lead study author Dr Julie Aitken Schermer, social sciences professor at the University of Western Ontario
In either case, they share more common factors than most two people, genetically and environmentally, until you put them in different classrooms. ‘If one makes friends in their class and is happy with the level of interaction they are having with other people, they are less likely to feel lonely,’ explains Dr Aitken Schermer. - daily mail
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