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Next year will mark a turning point when people around the world finally recognize that their health is not just physical and mental, but also social. Social health focuses on relationships; It is the dimension of your overall health and well-being that comes from connection with family, friends, co-workers, and community.
The focus on social health has accelerated in recent years. In particular, the Covid-19 pandemic drew attention to our social lives and their decline. According to a Meta-Gallup poll, 24 percent of people everyone feels alone. He Belonging Barometer Survey The American Immigration Council also found that 74 percent of Americans do not feel connected to their local community.
That feeling correlates with behavioral changes: Today, people spend an average of 24 hours more alone and 20 hours fewer with friends each month compared to two decades ago; participation in community groups, membership in local clubs, and membership in religious organizations have declined; and the percentage of single-person households has more than doubled since 1960. Another survey found that there is a surprising decline in the number of close friends adults have: In 1990, only 3 percent of Americans had no close friends; today that figure is more than 12 percent.
This crisis spurred initiatives such as the US Surgeon General raising loneliness as a public health priority and the World Health Organization establishing a global commission focused on human connection.
However, most people still underestimate how vital relationships are to their longevity. In fact, social health is linked to a 50 percent increase in longevity, which makes it as important to our lives as avoiding smoking, combating obesity and exercising regularly. We urgently need to prioritize and invest in social health. Here’s how.
Make social health a priority
To be physically healthy, nourish your body by trying to walk 10,000 steps a day or sleeping eight hours a night, for example. To be mentally healthy, you can meditate daily or go to therapy weekly. Being socially healthy requires similar intention and consistency. Try the 5-3-1 guideline: Try to interact with five different people each week, maintain at least three close relationships, and spend an hour a day connecting, preferably face-to-face. Just as each of us needs to consume a different amount of calories, these numbers may be higher or lower than what you personally consume; Use them as a starting point to explore what social health looks like for you.
Start little by little
Simple actions can make a significant difference to your social health. For example, studies have shown that people tend to underestimate how much a kind message via text or email will be appreciated, and even brief phone calls a few times a week can greatly decrease feelings of loneliness. So try connecting first: Instead of scrolling through headlines while waiting in line or putting on a podcast while you commute, text a photo to a friend or call a family member to chat. Unlike taking care of your physical and mental health, taking care of your social health also directly benefits the people you connect with.
think big
Following the rise of the mental health industry, the next health frontier in our economy will focus on social health. Entrepreneurs and investors are already hitting the ground running, with innovations like social gyms, friendship coaches and AI companions becoming more common. But no matter what your profession, you have opportunities to build a socially healthier future. For example, educators can teach relational skills in the classroom; doctors can perform isolation tests during appointments; architects can incorporate gathering spaces into their designs; city officials can support local community builders; and employers can create connected work cultures.
Stretch your social muscles
Depending on your particular life stage and circumstances (such as having recently moved to a new city and needing to build a community in your new home, or working a remote job and wanting more face-to-face interaction), you may need to try harder. Your social muscles to expand your social network. But how? Research shows that friendships arise from regular contact and shared experiences: that the more time you spend with someone, the closer you become. One study, for example, tracked students’ social networks for a year and a half as they transitioned from high school to college, and found that new friendships failed unless they maintained regular communication and did activities together. Similarly, another study found that for an adult who has recently moved to a new city, it takes a minimum of 50 hours to turn a new acquaintance into a friend; The more time together, the closer the friendship becomes.
Deepen existing relationships
Stretching is about increasing the amount of connection in your life; Toning is about improving the quality of the connection. Doing so requires curiosity and vulnerability. In a meta-analysis, researchers concluded that people like you more when you trust them and you like people more when you trust them. Choose the right context: Disclosing personal information is perceived favorably by people you already know and by new acquaintances in one-on-one conversations, but not necessarily by strangers in public settings. Look for depth over breadth: Sharing something intimate generates more enjoyment than sharing a lot of information. A survey of more than 4,600 people in the US, India and Japan showed that people across cultures found interactions to be more meaningful when they went beyond small talk to provide value through an emotional connection, a exchange of knowledge or practical help.