Loneliness rivals smoking and obesity in its impact on shortening longevity and has become a public health concern especially for the older adults say researchers. With older adults increasingly moving into senior living or retirement communities researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine sought to identify the common characteristics of residents who feel lonely in these environments. The new study published in the journal 'Aging and Mental Health' found that people's experience of living with loneliness is shaped by a number of personal and environmental factors. Age-associated losses and inadequate social skills were considered primary risk factors
