Americans are living longer than ever before, due to medical treatment advances, preventative medicine and public health improvements, and this trend of increased lifespan will continue. By 2060, the U.S. Census Bureau estimates that total life expectancy in the United States will reach 85.6 years.
As lifespans increase, it’s not just about adding years to a person’s life, says Sandy Markwood, CEO of USAging. Instead, she says, it’s about adding life to those years: quality time with purpose, respect and fulfillment.
“What we know is critical in achieving that goal is social connections,” says Markwood. “Our social connections are critical to valuing the talent, the knowledge, the contributions that people have across their lifespan.”
However, that social connection isn’t always easy to find or develop. Dr. Vivek H. Murthy, the 19th and 21st Surgeon General of the United States, has even called loneliness and social isolation an “epidemic.”
[READ: How Loneliness Impacts Your Health and 10 Ways to Combat It]
U.S. News & World Report Senior Living Survey
To better understand how older adults experience social connection within their communities and senior living situations, U.S. News & World Report surveyed residents who had recently moved into senior living communities and their families about their experiences with loneliness, the health impacts of social isolation and how moving into a senior living community changed that experience.
Top Causes of Loneliness
With the entire U.S. experiencing a loneliness epidemic, it’s important to understand what causes loneliness among seniors specifically. According to our latest survey of older Americans, the top causes of loneliness or isolation were:
1. Physical disability or lack of mobility
2. Memory loss (tie)
2. Separation from family and friends (tie)
3. Chronic health condition
4. Recent death of spouse
5. Worsening vision or hearing problems
Physical disability and mobility issues
Physical disabilities and lack of mobility are experienced in two different dimensions, says Markwood.
“One is personal mobility issues, if somebody has a chronic illness or other disability that limits their ability to get out of their house to engage in the community,” she says. “That’s where transportation and levels of support are so important.”
The other dimension is the community environment. A person’s ability to walk to the grocery store, doctor’s office or park depends on proximity, as well as access features like sidewalk curb ramps, which impacts everyone from seniors to people with strollers, teens on crutches and children on bicycles.
[Read: Having the Conversation With a Loved One About Senior Living.]
How Does Senior Living Impact Loneliness?
“Senior living in our world is an opportunity for that person who might be now living alone, depending on their family, to entertain them and take them places and be that support. They are now able to come into our setting and have people that are just like them,” says Susan McCormick-Agee, vice president of health and wellness at Volante Senior Living.
The U.S. News survey on seniors’ experience with loneliness asked residents who had recently moved into a senior living community, as well as their families, about feelings of loneliness before and after moving into their community. The survey findings indicate that making the move into a senior living community can improve a person’s social isolation and loneliness.
— More than two-thirds (69%) of seniors felt lonely a majority of the time (50% of the time or more) before moving into a senior living community.
— Fewer than half (42%) of seniors felt lonely a majority of the time after moving into a senior living community.
[READ: How to Choose the Right Senior Living Facility: A Checklist]
U.S. News survey respondents highlighted additional positive impacts of moving into senior living communities.
— 61% say their feelings of loneliness or isolation improved after moving into a senior living community.
— 65% say it has been easy to meet other seniors since moving into a senior living community.
— 85% of seniors have made friends since moving into a senior living community.
[READ: How to Make Friends as an Adult]
Senior Living Community Activities and Support
Depending on the levels of care offered in a senior living community, residents may have access to a variety of healthcare services. In addition to this need-based care, many senior living communities have an abundance of social activities available.
Many continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs) have what’s called a “resident services department,” says Dee Pekruhn, director of life plan community services and policy at LeadingAge. “Their whole job usually is to organize recreational and fun things to do,” she says.
Communities offer everything from arts to sports like pickleball to political discussion, as well as volunteer opportunities inside and outside the community.
“Depending on your region, the sky’s the limit,” says Pekruhn.
The U.S. News survey asked residents and their families about how often they have particular experiences. The survey found that since moving into a senior living community, seniors do the following more often:
— Take part in an activity they enjoy 19% more often
— Engage in physical activity 20% more often
— Find meaning or purpose in daily life 21% more often
Below is breakdown of the percentage of respondents who answered that they have the following experiences on a daily basis before versus after moving into a senior living community.
[CHART]
[Read: What Is Life Like in Assisted Living?]
In some cases, communities have activities directors who coordinate these activities and get residents engaged in their offerings. However, in other communities, activities are organized and run by residents.
Virginia Pusey lives in a community that offers over 100 resident-run activities and programs. This means that residents’ interests and past professions can lead to truly interesting programs. She attends monthly Shakespeare classes and readings taught by a former Shakespeare professor. She’s also involved in photography and book clubs and organizes a community speaker series.
She says that residents in her community make it a point to reach out to other members of the community to engage them in activities. This type of peer support can be crucial to help seniors become engaged.
[SEE: The Most Unique Nursing Home Activities for Seniors]
Connection Between Loneliness and Senior Health
Senior living communities, depending on the care levels available, can help older adults with clinical needs manage their conditions, whether that’s medication management, physical or occupational therapy or help with daily tasks. 33% of U.S. News survey respondents say their health condition(s) improved since moving into a senior living community.
In addition to help with chronic conditions, senior living communities can provide the social support needed to help improve someone’s health. About two-thirds of seniors (65%) said loneliness or isolation contributed to a decline in their health before moving into a senior living community.
Respondents also identified which particular aspects of senior living communities were most impactful in improving the resident’s health conditions.
— 63% said engagement with other residents helped improve the resident’s health conditions.
— 54% said residing in a safe environment helped improve the resident’s health conditions.
— 52% said having professional oversight for medications, vital signs and general ADL assistance helped improve the resident’s health conditions.
Pekruhn notes that moving into a senior living community isn’t a “magical” fix for health problems, but instead helps provide easier access to social and active opportunities.
“It’s really more about optimizing for that person and (giving them) the best chance of enjoying as healthy a life as possible,” she says.
Individuals may want to consider moving into a senior living community even before developing health issues, so that they can become an engaged part of the community and be encouraged to stay active, which can help with everything from mental health to bone density and muscle tone.
[READ: 7 Signs It’s Time to Move to a Senior Living Facility]
What to Know About Residency Transition for Seniors
Pusey had lived in the same place for 52 years, but she says it took her only two days to feel at home after moving into her senior living community. “There’s a sense of caring here, and we reach out to the community.” She says it’s like going to college again.
Yet the transition won’t be easy for everyone. Some people experience feelings of lost identity, for example, from not having a large enough home to host family during the holidays. Other people may lose social connections with their neighbors and family because of their new location.
“I almost equate it to people bringing their kids to daycare for the first time, you know that feeling in the pit of your stomach,” McCormick-Agee describes. “It’s most hard for children, I think, to take their parents to senior living,” she says. “One of the things I like to tell family members is it’s a journey that we are taking together.”
She notes a few things that are critically important during that transition period:=
— Gathering information at the beginning of the transition. It’s important that families share everything they can about their loved one with staff members at community, from their favorite foods to daily routine and activities they enjoy
— Developing an individualized plan. With the senior living community, develop a plan for how often you’ll visit, what your family member’s day will look like and what to do in certain situations.
— Having frequent conversations and touch points. McCormick-Agee notes that if every time they called a family member of a resident was when a person fell, it would create extra anxiety. So, it’s important to have check-ins for positive events, like when a parent goes out on a walk, has a positive social interaction or tries a new activity.
If Pusey were to give one piece of advice to people moving into a senior living community,” it would be to join one activity that is interesting to them. “Start with one,” she says. “I think common interests are the glue that gets you going.”
[READ: How to Make the Transition to an Assisted Living Community Easier]
U.S. News Methodology
Between November and December of 2024, U.S. News surveyed 360 U.S. adults and their family members aged 55 and over who moved into independent living (55%), assisted living (22%) or memory care (23%) within the last two years.
Of the 360 people who responded, 40% identified themselves as male, and 60% identified themselves as female.
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How Senior Living Communities Reduce Loneliness and Improve Senior Health: 2025 U.S. News Survey Report originally appeared on usnews.com
