90,000 elderly people over the age of 85 are lonely in Switzerland
Published: Sunday, Sep 29th 2024, 14:50
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In Switzerland, around 90,000 people over the age of 85 are lonely. That is 37 percent of this age group. This limits their quality of life and therefore their life expectancy. However, they are difficult to reach in the fight against loneliness, according to the organization Pro Senectute.
It bases this on its Age Monitor, as it announced on Sunday. In contrast to younger senior citizens, the over-85s are more often confronted with the loss of loved ones. For example, 24% of 65 to 74-year-olds cite loneliness as a problem, compared to 25% of 75 to 84-year-olds.
To make matters worse in old age, people over the age of 85 often have to contend with health problems and limited mobility. According to Pro Senectute, the lack of personal contact leads to additional health problems. Lonely people are more likely to suffer from depression and high blood pressure, exercise less, are under more stress and are more likely to develop dementia.
Pro Senectute is therefore appealing to society. The organization relies on low-threshold household and visiting services. The foundation relies on volunteers, which is becoming increasingly difficult.
"We would like to call on anyone interested to get in touch so that they can make a tangible difference in their own lives and in the lives of older people," said Pro Senectute Executive Board member Alexander Widmer in the press release.
©Keystone/SDA
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