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The Dying Heart

       The human heart is both magnificent and mysterious.  Relatively light, it averages only 9 ounces for a woman and 10.5 ounces for a man.  Without its steady beat - more than 100,000 times in a single day - we become seriously ill or die.

       A lot is known about physical factors that contribute to heart disease such as cholesterol level, diabetes, hypertension, obesity, and smoking.  We are urged to eat right, exercise often, and refrain from smoking.

       But there's another cause of heart problems.  Seldom discussed, it is more emotional and social in nature and primarily targets the elderly.

       That risk factor is loneliness.

       A recent study suggest that loneliness - the lack of emotional and social support, and perceived lack of companionship - significantly increases the likelihood of heart disease.

       Researchers studied 180 older citizens from 58 to 90.  "Units of loneliness" were determined by measuring each person's perceived inability to have people in their life when desired.  Two important findings emerged.

       The first was that for every additional "loneliness unit," there was a threefold increase in the likelihood of an individual being diagnosed with a heart problem.

       The second was that having just one person available for emotional support significantly reduced an elderly person's risk of heart disease.

       The researchers could not determine how loneliness causes this illness.  It wasn't clear whether the lonely elderly eat unhealthier foods, smoke more or exercise less than non-lonely peers.

       My sense is that when the human heart does not feel valued, it begins to die.  For most Americans, aging carries with it an erosion of identities derived from work and family life, loss of peers through death and gradual decline in physical health.  It can be a time for new beginnings, but there are few social supports for making such a transition.

       Retirement and "empty-nest syndrome" produce feelings of aching loss.  Some people attempt to fill this void by developing a hobby, continuing to work part time, or enjoying a grandma or grandpa role.

      If occupation and parental identities were the only losses, the impact on heart, and psyche might be manageable.

       But there is more.

       With every birthday a senior citizen outlives some significant others.  There is often a state of almost continual mourning.

       And a previously autonomous world shrinks dramatically as normal aging makes walking and driving harder.  Any more to residential care creates new trauma as home and possessions become a thing of the past and old social networks are lost.

       In our society, the heart is seen as a symbolic reservoir of love and compassion.  "I love you with all my heart" or "I am heartbroken" are part of ordinary language.  Even preschoolers crayon a red heart to represent happiness.

       But aging is not a happy experience in America.  There is little societal love, compassion, or basic respect for the elderly. For most people, it signifies a time of diminished usefulness, loss of autonomy, and intense social isolation.

       So it is easy to see why loneliness produces heart ache and heart disease for this group.

       It is up to each of us to look into our own hearts and identify solutions.  My thought is to get busy and produce that so-far missing "Manual of Graceful, Identity-Filled, Joyful Aging."

by Judy Shepps Battle
Philadelphia Daily News, Page 21
Wednesday, February 19, 2003