Today is your day Boomer! Remember that Elvis song from 1960? It starts off this way: Are you lonesome tonight?....Do you miss me tonight?...Are you sorry we drifted apart? Yup, great song, but the sense of loneliness you get is just awful. Well, according to a new report, loneliness is just as bad for you as smoking a pack of cigarettes every day! The U.S. Surgeon General says about half of Americans are very lonely....and so I assume the same could be said for Canada. Spokesperson Vivek Murthy says "We now know that loneliness is a common feeling that many people experience. It's like hunger or thirst. It's a feeling the body sends us when something we need for survival is missing." Research shows that Americans, who have become less engaged with worship houses, community organizations and even their own family members in recent decades, have steadily reported an increase in feelings of loneliness. The number of single households has also doubled over the last 60 years. But the crisis deeply worsened when COVID-19 spread, prompting schools and workplaces to shut their doors and sending millions of Americans to isolate at home away from relatives or friends. Hmmmmmm.....the other factor is technology. We stay home a lot more and surf the internet. Even social media is not as good as personal face-to-face interactions. So Boomers, what does this mean for our health? The doctor says "Loneliness increases the risk of premature death by nearly 30%, and those with poor social relationships have a greater risk of stroke and heart disease. Isolation also elevates a person's likelihood for experiencing depression, anxiety and dementia". Oh, oh. Let's get out there Boomers and socialize our faces off! Cheers.