Why Loneliness Is Bad for You

为什么孤独有害于你的健康？
 
Feeling lonely can make you sick. Doctors have long known that loneliness is associated with cardiovascular problems, viral infections, and higher mortality. What they didn’t know is how this feeling begets illness. A study in the September issue of the online journal Genome Biology suggests that loneliness actually affects the very core of our bodies—our genes.
 
In a small population of patients, researchers surveyed more than 20,000 genes using DNA microarrays to compare how the genes of lonely and nonlonely individuals express themselves in molecular processes and, ultimately, in personal health. They found that gene expression is different at 209 sites in chronically lonely people and that many of those changes fit a pattern of elevated immune activation, inflammation, and depressed response to infection. “We now have a molecular framework for understanding the relationship between social experience and physical health,” explains the study’s lead author, Steve Cole of UCLA.
 
The study found that loneliness desensitizes the glucocorticoid receptors, cutting off the immune control and anti-inflammatory effects of cortisol, a stress-related hormone that also helps regulate the conversion of carbohydrates to energy. The depressed cortisol response concurs with the known effects of loneliness and provides a potential target for treatment.
 
This study—the first to link feelings with genomewide changes—is “in some sense groundbreaking,” says Emma Adam, an associate professor of human development and social policy at Northwestern University. “It fills in the black box.”
 
According to John Cacioppo, an author of the study and a psychologist from the University of Chicago, the work suggests that loneliness is a warning sign, much like physical pain. “This very process of feeling bad because of disconnection contributes to what it means to be human,” he says. “It makes us care for other people and want to reconnect when we’re disconnected.”
 
 
  孤独感会让人得病。孤独可能让人患上心血管疾病和病毒感染，并且可能导致更高的死亡率。以上这些对于医生们早已不是什么新鲜事了。但是关于孤独感是怎么样慢慢吞噬人类健康的，他们也毫无头绪。
 
  如今，在网上杂志《Genome Biology》9月月刊中的一篇文章中，我们终于找到了答案。孤独感之所以会使我们生病是因为它影响了人体的核心——我们的基因。
 
  在针对一小群病人的实验中，研究者检验了两万多个不同的人类基因，通过研究病人的DNA来比较孤独的人和不孤独的人的基因在分子运动中的区别以及这种区别最终对他们健康的影响。研究者们发现，在长期患有孤独感的病人的基因序列中，有209处和普通人有明显不同，而且在这209处基因变异中，大多数变异符合某些疾病的表现，如免疫过度活跃，炎症和迟钝的对抗感染机能。这篇研究报告的主编，美国加利福尼亚大学洛杉矶分校的Steve Cole说，“我们现在已经从分子的层面上来研究社会体验和人类健康之间的关系了。”
 
  研究发现，孤独感会让肾上腺素的感受细胞变的迟钝，破坏具有消炎作用的皮质(甾)醇和人体免疫系统正常的控制功能。皮质(甾)醇是一种由压力而产生的荷尔蒙，它参与帮助人体内部糖向能量的转化。皮质(甾)醇反应力低下会导致我们所熟知的孤独症的一系列不良反应，那些皮质(甾)醇反应力低下的人们，如果病情进一步恶化，应该及时接受治疗。
 
  美国西北大学人类发展与社会政策学院的负教授Emma Adam说：“从某种意义上说，这项研究——人类将染色体变化与人类感官联系起来的首次尝试——具有里程碑式的意义，它是打开谜团的钥匙。”
 
  同样作为这篇文章的作者，美国芝加哥大学的心理学家John Cacioppo认为，这项研究结果表明，孤独感是一种人体自身做出的警告和暗示，就像是身体疼痛暗示着某种疾病一样。他说，“正是由于孤独而感到难过不舒服的这个过程让人类有别于其他动物，它让我们关心身边的人，并在自己孤独的时候产生与他人交流的愿望。”