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Hello and welcome to The Excerpt. I'm Dana Taylor. Today is Sunday, December 24th, 2023. He's been shouting about it from the rooftops for years now. He's presented his case to

thousands across the country, both the young and old. He's even

written a book. Loneliness is not just a public health crisis, it's an epidemic that

urgently needs our attention. The World Health Organization has recently decided it agrees with

him. Now as co-chair of its newly appointed Commission on Social Connections, U.S. Surgeon

General Veeveck Murphy has an even bigger platform from which to advocate for

change encouraging us to reach out and ask for help while also offering it to others

who may need it. For many addressing loneliness may just be a matter of life and death.

Dr. Murphy, thank you for joining the excerpt.

Thank you so much.

I'm so glad to be with you today.

Dr. Murphy, you've talked about how loneliness has a major impact on our physical and mental health,

potentially leading to premature death and increasing one's risk of dementia,

among other things. And recently you've said that being

lonely is as deadly as smoking 12 cigarettes a day. Give a sense of the scope of the

problem here. How bad is it? Well, I'm so glad you asked because most of us probably think of loneliness is just a bad

feeling and it certainly is that. You know, I've experienced loneliness as a child.

I've certainly had times I've struggled with loneliness as an adult. of shrug off or suck up and deal with yourself.

What we may not have realized is that it has real consequences for our health,

especially when it's prolonged.

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