Loneliness affects memory in older people, but does not accelerate mental decline over time, data from a major European study that followed more than 10,000 people over seven years suggests.
Participants who reported higher levels of loneliness performed worse on memory tests at the beginning of the study period. However, the ability of people who felt lonely to recall information declined over monitored time at the same rate as that of participants who did not feel lonely.
Research results published in peer-reviewed journals aging and mental health, This comes from an analysis of the Survey of Health, Aging and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) survey.
They surveyed 10,217 people aged 65 to 94 from 12 countries across the continent.
Loneliness is a significant public health issue because of its impact on longevity, physical and mental health, and well-being.
These results further highlight the strong link between loneliness and brain function in older adults and support the theory that isolation is not necessarily a risk factor for dementia.
The authors, from the University of Rosario in Colombia, the Clinical Universities of Navarra and Valencia in Spain, and the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, suggest that regular loneliness screening could be included in tests of older people’s mental capacity. They add that this approach may be one of several strategies that medical professionals can develop to promote optimal aging.
“Our finding that loneliness has a strong effect on memory, but not the rate of memory decline over time, was a surprising result,” said lead author Dr. Luis Carlos Venegas-Sanabria, from the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences at the University of Rosario.
“That suggests that loneliness may play a more prominent role in the initial state of memory than in its progressive decline.
“This study highlights the importance of addressing loneliness as a key component of cognitive performance in older adults.”
Loneliness and social isolation are among the most relevant risk factors for dementia. However, data on the association between loneliness and cognitive function are inconsistent. Some studies suggest that loneliness accelerates cognitive decline over time, while others find no significant association.
The purpose of this study was to assess the effects of solitude on memory changes, i.e., immediate and delayed recall, over a 7-year period.
The analysis used data covering 2012-2019 from SHARE, a longitudinal study launched in 2002 investigating the health and aging of Europeans aged 50 and over.
Participants included participants from countries such as Germany, Spain, Sweden, and Slovenia. All 12 countries were grouped into four geographic regions: central, southern, northern, and eastern.
People with a history of dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease, were excluded, along with people who were “impaired” in activities related to daily living (classified as people who had some impairment in activities such as walking, eating, or showering).
Memory was assessed as the ability to recall information immediately and after a time delay. In the test, participants had to memorize as many words as possible in one minute. This is a list of 10 words read aloud.
Loneliness was defined as “feeling alone.” Researchers asked participants three questions to measure their loneliness and categorized them as low, average, or high.
The questions were: How often do you feel like you lack company? How often do you feel left out?and How often do you feel isolated from others?
Researchers also assessed physical activity, participation in social activities, depression scores, diabetes, and other factors that could influence the study.
The results showed that levels of loneliness were highest in southern European countries (12%), followed by eastern regions (9%), central regions (6%) and northern regions (9%).
Overall, the majority of participants (92%) reported average or low levels of loneliness at the start of the study. The high-level group (8%) were older, mostly female, and self-reported more severe health problems. Additionally, they had higher prevalence of depression, hypertension, and diabetes.
People in the high category had lower immediate and delayed recall scores at the beginning of the study compared to people with lower levels of loneliness.
However, they experienced a rapid decline in memory performance, similar to participants in the low and average loneliness categories. This steep “slope” was observed between the third and seventh year assessments.
The authors emphasize that their study treats loneliness as something that does not change over time. However, in the real world, perceptions of loneliness can change “in response to changes in personal or environmental characteristics over the lifespan,” the researchers say.
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Reference magazines:
Venegas – Sanabria, LC, Others. (2026). Memory trajectories of lonely individuals in Europe: An analysis of the European Survey of Health, Aging and Retirement (SHARE). Aging and mental health. DOI: 10.1080/13607863.2026.2624569. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13607863.2026.2624569
