US surgeon general Dr Vivek Murthy recently said that widespread loneliness in the US poses health risks as deadly as smoking a dozen cigarettes daily. He further declared that it is the latest epidemic.
In the report, he mentioned that the loneliness epidemic is hitting young people aged between 15 to 24. This age group reported a 70 per cent drop in time spent with friends.
Murthy also highlighted that social media is driving the increase in loneliness in particular and health systems should train doctors to recognise health risks caused by it.
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