Socially Isolated Older Adults are at 34 Percent Higher Risk of Diabetes: ENDO 2025 Study - Video

A study presented at ENDO 2025, the Endocrine Society's annual meeting in San Francisco, reveals that socially isolated older adults face a significantly higher risk of developing diabetes and poor blood sugar control, highlighting social isolation as a key health concern.

The research sheds light on the hidden health risks tied to loneliness and lack of social connection among older adults, particularly in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.

With the global aging population growing rapidly and social isolation becoming more prevalent, the study emphasizes the importance of social support networks in protecting the health of older adults. While previous studies have hinted at a connection between social isolation and diabetes, this new research is one of the first to assess its impact on glycemic control using data from a nationally representative population sample.

Khan and her team analyzed data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) collected between 2003 and 2008. NHANES is a long-running program that assesses the health and nutrition of adults and children in the U.S. The researchers focused on 3,833 adults aged 60 to 84, representing approximately 38 million older Americans.

After adjusting for other variables, the study found that socially isolated individuals were 34% more likely to have diabetes and 75% more likely to have poorly controlled blood sugar levels than those who were not isolated.

“These findings underscore the importance of social connections for the well-being of older adults,” said lead researcher Samiya Khan, M.D., of the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. “Physicians should recognize social isolation as a potential risk factor among elderly patients for both diabetes and high blood sugar.”

The findings highlight the need for healthcare providers and public health systems to address social isolation as a modifiable risk factor for chronic diseases like diabetes in the aging population.

Reference: https://www.endocrine.org/