I am 26 years old. I feel like in this time of my life when I'm supposed to be the most

social and the most connected, I'm actually the most isolated I've ever been.

I just moved to DC last year and it's been tough making friends. It feels like I'm kind

of starting over again. I have reduced the total number of people I would consider in

my inner circle, but perhaps strengthened relationships with the ones who stayed there.

Over the past two years, people around the world have experienced new levels of social

isolation. But even before the pandemic, experts were already warning about a loneliness epidemic.

In 2018, nearly half of Americans reported feeling alone. Our network of friends has shrunk.

Most to half of American adults say they have only three close friends or fewer. It's sad

on an individual level, but it's also a public health concern. This week, we're going to

look at the science behind loneliness. Why is social interactions so important for our

well-being? How does loneliness affect our brains? And what can we do to improve the situation?

I'm Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN's Chief Medical Correspondent. And it's time to start chasing

life.

Neuroscience has shown that, in fact, our brains use more metabolic resources when we're

facing a threat alone versus when we are in the proximity of others.

That's Julianne Holt-Lunstad. She's a professor of psychology and neuroscience at Brigham

Young University. Her research focuses on the long-term health effects of social connection.

And why loneliness can be such a challenge when our brains aren't well adapted to survive

alone? In essence, it's argued that our brains have adapted to expect the proximity of others.

It's always been throughout human history, adaptive to be part of a group.

Study after study has shown that people who are chronically lonely are at greater risk

...