…College students aren’t the only ones whose health may suffer with those feelings. “Loneliness and social isolation have previously been associated with immune detriments,” says Pressman.

“As you get older, the immune system doesn’t work as well,” she says, noting that older people’s social networks sometimes thin as friends and family move away or die.

A study of 180 senior citizens found an association between loneliness and heart disease. That report appeared in the December 2002 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine. (Partial quote of article from WebMD)

Oh, great. Well, that’s yet another reason to broaden my social network right now. While I’m still young enough and energetic enough to do so. I’ve always been one for taking prophylactic measures, which is why I work out, save for retirement, have a college fund for a kid I don’t even have yet, take vitamin supplements. All the little problems that people have in their mid-late 30s really begin in their early 20s. The back problems, the high blood pressure, certain types of diabetes, heart/cholesterol problems, knee problems, even osteoperosis. My newest thing is anti-wrinkle cream! I figure it’s easier to keep my skin supple than to erase wrinkles once they’re in place. I’m trying to prevent the old adage, “If I only knew then what I know now…” because I think a lot of the information the older people have, the younger people also have access to, and it’s up to us to apply the knowledge to prevent one day repeating the adage.

Last Wednesday, I had a conversation with a coworker at the gym while the two of us were doing our cardio set on the stationary bike. He made a breezy comment about seeing me work out daily and how I only need to keep it up until I get married. I turned and looked at him in surprise. “You think I’m doing this just to land a husband?” I asked. He looked at ME as if it had never occured to him that a girl would be at the gym for any other reason but to sweeten the bait to hook some naive young buck. “I wouldn’t do that to my husband,” I told him, “Even after years of marriage I still want to make my husband proud to have me on his arm and I still want his friends to be envious that his wife looks a certain way.” My coworker looked impressed, and I bit my tongue against the urge to add, “I’m sorry your wife got fat on you.” Which, of course, I don’t know for a fact because I’ve never seen his wife, but I’m sure she’s lovely.