If you cry during movies, interpret ordinary situations as threatening or fear rejection, you could be at greater risk of an early death.
The behaviors are among those with neuroticism, and a new study found that the personality trait increases chances of a premature death by 10 percent.
Neuroticism is associated with negative emotions like fear, sadness and irritability, but is made of various components like loneliness, anxiety, and irritability that wreck havoc on the mind and body.
Scientists identified loneliness as the strongest predictor of a premature death, because the feeling can lead to intentional self-harm, respiratory and digestive system diseases, the researchers claimed.
Other aspects of the neuroticism, such as mood swings and feeling fed up, were also associated with higher mortality risk.
Overall, the team found that the link was strongest in men, and especially significant among people younger than age 54 and those without a college degree.
A team of researchers led by Florida State University analyzed data from the UK Biobank, a massive database that contains biological samples and genetic, lifestyle and health information from half a million people.
Nearly 500,000 individuals whose information was stored in the Biobank completed a neuroticism evaluation between 2006 and 2010.
While neuroticism is associated with anxiety and depression , loneliness stood out as the strongest predictor of early death
For 17 years since, scientists have kept track of whether these individuals lived or died.
The research team used this ‘vital status’ data along with the participants’ neuroticism scores to investigate whether the personality trait – and certain components thereof – were more strongly related to premature death than others.
During that 17-year period, 43,400 of the roughly 500,000 participants died – about 8.8 percent of the total sample size.
Data showed that the average age at death was 70 years old, with the primary cause of cancer, followed by nervous system, respiratory system and digestive system diseases.
Those who perished from respiratory or digestive issues largely reported feeling ‘fed up’ during the evaluation.
A small 0.7 percent, about 291 people, were reported as intentional self-harm.
These individuals said they experienced guilt and mood swings, and felt constantly stressed during their lives.
However, the people who scored higher neuroticism all reported they felt loneliness.
The link between loneliness and premature death could also be explained due to an increase in feelings of isolation as a person approaches death.
This was contradicted, however, by the fact that the link was similar when deaths within the first five to 10 years of follow-up were excluded, the researchers state.
‘It was surprising that loneliness had a much stronger impact than other components of neuroticism,’ Antonio Terracciano, senior author and Florida State University professor of geriatrics, told PsyPost.
‘The findings indicate that those who reported being lonely were at much higher risk of death than those who felt anxious or guilty,’ he added.
Terracciano and his colleagues published their findings in the Journal of Affective Disorders in September.
The study provides new insight into how loneliness impacts health and longevity as experts warn that the US is facing a loneliness epidemic.
A 2023 report from the Surgeon General found that even before the COVID-19 pandemic, about half of US adults reported experiencing measurable levels of loneliness.
It warned that the physical consequences of social isolation can be devastating, including a 29 percent increased risk of heart disease, a 32 percent increased risk of stroke, and a 50 percent increased risk of developing dementia for older adults.
In fact, loneliness can increase the risk for premature death to levels comparable to smoking 15 cigarettes a day, the report states.
Additionally, previous research has found that neuroticism is a strong predictor of neurological diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, as well as other conditions including stroke, irritable bowl disease (IBD) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
This most recent study aimed to build on earlier studies, and provides new evidence to support the fact that neuroticism and loneliness take a significant toll on human health.
