A problem shared: Social circle can boost survival rate by 50%

ENJOYING good “social connections” with friends, family, colleagues and neighbours can improve an individual’s chances of survival by 50%, a study has found.

Having little social interaction can be as unhealthy as smoking 15 cigarettes a day or being an alcoholic, academics at Brigham Young University in America concluded.

The study, published in the Public Library of Science Medicine journal, also revealed being socially isolated can be more harmful than not exercising or twice as bad as the risks posed by obesity.