According to UCL, if you are concerned about cognitive decline and dementia, Andrew Sommerlad PhD recommends that you keep socially active, manage your cardiovascular health, and be physically active.
Reduces the likelihood of loneliness and isolation
According to the late John T. Cacioppo, PhD (former head of the University of Chicago’s Center for Cognitive and Social Neuroscience), people who experience social isolation and loneliness are more likely to acquire certain physical and mental problems. High blood pressure, obesity, heart disease, anxiety, depression, Alzheimer’s disease, a weaker immune system, cognitive decline, and even mortality were among the conditions. Loneliness is so harmful to human health that it has been dubbed the “epidemic of the twenty-first century.” The good news is that not everything is doom and gloom.
Regularly engaging in meaningful activities with friends and family helps us overcome feelings of loneliness and social isolation, and so helps fend against various mental and physical ailments!
It’s never too late to reconnect with old friends or make new ones, no matter how old you are. If you’re interested in the latter, you can join a social group, club, or interest-based organisation. Spice Social is one such group dedicated to bringing like-minded people together.
Encourages a sense of belonging
Regular social activities can help you develop a sense of belonging and a better support network by forming a micro-community around the things you enjoy. This is especially true if the activities occur regularly or semi-regularly with the same groups of people.
Attending a single activity, for example, can be pleasurable and socially beneficial, but it is rarely enough to form long-lasting bonds with the individuals you encounter. A sense of shared identity and purpose is typically developed over time by participating in a succession of similar activities with the same group of people, usually with people who share similar interests.
Part of the reason for this is that you learn that others depend on your attendance for the activity to happen just as much as you depend on them.
In the Spice Community, we’ve been lucky enough to see this sense of shared purpose and community development in an incredible array of Spice Social interest groups involving members not only in their local regions but nationally: from walking groups to holidays, quiz nights, and food connoisseurs. Members who attend these activities regularly form an important sense of belonging with other group members, which in turn helps them create a shared sense of purpose.
If you’re looking to make new friends and stay socially active, consider joining Spice Social, the UK’s leading companionship community, connecting its members through activities, interest groups, events, and more. Sign up for free today! Or if you prefer contact us or your local coordinator for more information.
