16 December 2017•Update: 17 December 2017
By Ahmet Gurhan Kartal
LONDON
A woman in her sixties is sitting at a table at a North London restaurant, eating her favorite food for Friday night.
She looked lonely and was glancing at people sitting at other tables with an imperceptible smile.
She took longish breaks between each bite from her kebab and rice with an unexciting pile of salad on the side. She was thoughtful.
In the background there was chatter from restaurant workers, mostly in languages other than English.
She did not finish the food, but wanted to pay the bill. She looked momentarily happier when she had the chance to speak with the waiter in the process.
She paid the bill with cash she took out from a creased white envelope, stood up, and walked toward the door.
The woman turned back while opening the door to leave, with probably a last glimpse of hope for a friendly farewell from a stranger.
“Thank you,” she said. Busy workers of the eatery did not hear her. She left.
'Deadlier than obesity or smoking'
The woman appeared to be one of the at least 9 million British people who suffer from loneliness.
Describing loneliness as being “deadlier than obesity or smoking 15 cigarettes a day”, a report by the Loneliness Commission, founded by murdered lawmaker Jo Cox, claimed on Friday.
The research says over 9 million British adults are often or always lonely.
It urged the government to create a national strategy to combat loneliness, but said official action would not be enough.
"Tackling loneliness is a generational challenge that can only be met by concerted action by everyone -- governments, employers, businesses, civil society organizations, families, communities and individuals all have a role to play,” it said.
The report urged the government to appoint a minister to drive action on loneliness.
It also called for further development of the current Family Test -- a process by which the government assesses family policies.
"It's getting worse because we have an ageing society, more people live on their own, there are fewer people living in households, and there's the rise of social media, which can be useful for connecting people but also means that people tend to spend a lot more time in their bedrooms on their phones," said lawmaker Seema Kennedy, who worked with Cox in setting up the commission.
Costing $3.3B a year
The report notes that three-quarters of family doctors say they see up to five patients every day who are lonely.
It also argued that loneliness is estimated to cost employers £2.5 billion ($3.3 billion) every year.
"We welcome the work of the Jo Cox Commission and its ambition to combat loneliness. Tackling social isolation and loneliness is of huge importance to the government,” a government spokesman said.
"A number of government initiatives already help to reduce loneliness, such as improved mental health support and funding to create new green spaces for communities, but we are committed to doing more and look forward to setting out plans in the New Year."
The report came just before the festive season as Christmas to arrive in less than 10 days.
Loneliness or isolation add into stress at worse levels at this time of the year as the pressure to be festive can make Christmas an especially difficult time.
Dr. Andy Knox, GP executive lead for health and wellbeing at Morecambe Bay Clinical Commissioning Group, said: “It’s important to remember that this time of year is not full of joy for everyone, and we all need to work together to help people stay connected with those around them."
