Study: Men who are permanently single have weaker immune systems

Men who have been single for a long time or who have been through many breakups are said to have increased levels of inflammation in their blood – a risk factor for increased mortality.

The finding came out loud „Medscape“-Report a research team from the University of Copenhagen.

According to the study, this does not appear to be the case for women. The researchers concluded that men who are permanently single or who have experienced a lot of separation pain may suffer greater health damage than men.

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Life as a permanent single can not only make you lonely, it also supposedly poses a measurable health risk – at least for men. Men who have lived alone for a long time or who have been through many separations are said to have increased levels of inflammatory markers in their blood. This could be associated with increased mortality. This emerges from a Danish observational study by a research team from the University of Copenhagen. First, the specialist portal „Medscape“ reported about it. The results were published in the Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health.

After separating from a permanent partner, being single for a long time is often inevitable. After all, many people first have to process the end of the relationship emotionally. Several studies have already shown that this time poses health risks and even attacks the immune system. However, most of the studies only referred to separations – the Danish research team led by first author Davidsen therefore focused on the health effects of frequent separations and being single.

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Lonely men have higher inflammation scores

For the study, the research team interviewed 4,835 people between the ages of 48 and 62. Around 3,300 men gave information about the separation of partners and how long they had been single, while only around 1,500 women gave information. The participants were divided into three groups. Those living under one year single – Group A – served as a comparison group. Group B has been alone for two to six years, and Group C for over seven years. About half of the participants had experienced a separation and a similar number had lived alone for over a year. As part of the study, the scientists then measured inflammatory markers in the blood of those surveyed and obtained information about potential influencing factors.

The finding: Men who had frequent separations had the highest levels of inflammatory markers — 17 percentage points higher, to be precise, than the comparison group. Inflammatory markers were 12 percentage points higher in the group that had lived alone for seven or more years. No comparable connection could be found for women – on the one hand, this could be due to the smaller number of participants. On the other hand, it could be that men who are permanently single suffer more from it.

“The levels of inflammation in our study are low, but they are significant, clinically relevant, and most likely a risk factor for increased mortality,” said Davidsen and her team. “As the number of single households has increased in most high-income countries over the past 50-60 years, this group of people who are breaking up from a relationship or are otherwise living alone are at risk.”

LH

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