Government can't solve the 'loneliness epidemic,' but we can. Here's how

President Biden is finally dismantling the last remaining COVID-related restrictions. But don’t worry; U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy has announced a new epidemic.

This one didn’t escape from a wet market and certainly wasn’t created in a lab. Dr. Murthy has declared “an epidemic of loneliness.”

“Millions of people in America are struggling in the shadows, and that’s not right,” Murthy said. “That’s why I issued this advisory to pull back the curtain on a struggle that too many people are experiencing.”

Loneliness has real impacts on our health

The surgeon general released an 81-page report this week showing that half of U.S. adults say they’ve experienced loneliness.

That number seems low — who hasn’t felt lonely? — but just 39% answered that they “felt very connected to others.”

Murthy took action when research tied serious mental and physical health risks to social disconnection.

According to the report, loneliness leads to higher instances of disease, dementia, stroke, depression and anxiety.

The damage to life expectancy is as deadly as smoking up to 15 cigarettes daily. All of this adds to higher health costs, loss of worker productivity and declining community cohesion.

We've been isolating ourselves for years

Every governmental policy bears unintended consequences. Unsurprisingly, the strict COVID-19 lockdowns forced upon much of the country helped stoke this new epidemic.

But those restrictions hardly deserve all the blame.

Over the past two decades, individual social participation with friends and family has fallen, along with larger-scale community involvement. Fewer people are married and couples have fewer children.

Outside of relatives, Americans are far less likely to join community organizations or show up for religious services. Just 20% attend faith communities on a weekly basis.

Then, of course, there’s technology. When you can work from home and attend school online, there are fewer reasons than ever to change out of your pajamas.

Technology, social media made it worse

Bored teens in the 1980s would head to the mall and run into a dozen friends eager to catch a movie or annoy retail staff.

Today, the friends all reside in a teen’s smartphone, with many located across the country or on the other side of the world.

Adults are much the same. With a few clicks, everything from meals to clothes to books are dropped on our doorsteps.

No wonder we're so lonely: We can't talk to people with different opinions

Worse still, one can tailor their online communities to weed out anyone with different politics, interests or opinions. With a large chunk of Americans never exposed to a contrary viewpoint, it’s no wonder we’re at each other’s throats.

We all know social isolation is a problem and are pretty sure what’s causing it. It’s time to fix it for our own health as well as our community’s.

Join a club, volunteer, call a friend

Murthy offers a few ideas but few show much hope. We can tweak family leave and pass a tech reform or two, but top-down public policy solutions won’t improve much.

What will cure loneliness just requires a bit more effort from each of us.

• Join a social club or community organization. And actually show up; no Zoom allowed.

• Visit your church, synagogue, or mosque and sign up as a volunteer for anything that strikes your fancy.

Seriously, if I can do this stuff anyone can.

I’m a serious introvert by nature and love my alone time. Yet I made a commitment two years ago to meet with a friend for lunch or coffee every week or two to strengthen those critical ties.

Now, they’re the highlight of my week.

I applaud Murthy for calling attention this epidemic, but even he must know loneliness can’t be fixed by a federal agency. Ultimately, it’s up to us.

So, call a friend and invite them to lunch. Yes, you’ll have to change out of your pajamas, but won’t kill you.

It might just save your life.

Jon Gabriel, a Mesa resident, is editor-in-chief of Ricochet.com and a contributor to The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com. On Twitter: @exjon.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: 'Loneliness pandemic' is real and serious. Here's how to fight it