Older people are often thought of as being lonely. Maybe their partner has passed away and they live alone, and their age means they can't get around like they used to.

人们通常认为老年人是孤独的。也许他们的配偶去世了，他们过着独居生活，上了年纪意味着他们无法像过去一样生活。

Research has shown how loneliness is bad for our health.

已有研究显示，孤独对健康是有害的。

For example, one study looked at how being lonely can increase the levels of stress hormones in our bodies, which have been linked to heart disease, diabetes, and dementia. Another showed how lonely people have a 50 percent increased risk of early death.

例如，一项研究发现，孤独会令体内的压力荷尔蒙水平升高，压力荷尔蒙和心脏病、糖尿病和痴呆症有关。另一项研究显示，孤独者的早逝风险增加50%。

But while we think of older people being more solitary, and thus more lonely, this might not actually be true.

虽然人们都以为老年人孤身一人的时候更多，所以更寂寞，但事实也许不是这样。

According to the work of Julianne Holt-Lunstad, a psychology professor at Brigham Young University in Utah, loneliness is actually at its peak among teenagers and young adults.

美国犹他州杨百翰大学的心理学教授朱莉安娜·郝特-朗斯达的研究报告指出，实际上，青少年和青年才是最孤独的。

Holt-Lunstad and her colleagues analysed 70 studies, and found that there were stronger risks of loneliness-related illness for under- 65s than over-65s.

郝特-朗斯达和她的同事们分析了70项研究后发现，65岁以下人群患孤独相关疾病的风险比65岁以上人群更高。

Also, the US National Social Life, Health and Ageing Project states that just 30 percent of older adults feel lonely fairly often.

此外，美国国家社会生活、健康和老龄化项目称，只有30%的老年人经常感到孤独。

"Older adults should not be the sole focus of the effects of loneliness and social isolation. We need to address this for all ages," Holt-Lunstad told The New York Times, which summed up the health impacts of loneliness in a recent article.

郝特-朗斯达告诉《纽约时报》说：“老年人不应该是孤独和与世隔绝效应唯一关注的焦点。我们需要关注各个年龄层的孤独问题。”《纽约时报》近期的一篇文章中总结了孤独对健康的影响。

"If we recognise social connections as a fundamental human need, then we can't discount the risks of being socially isolated even if people don't feel lonely," she added.

她补充说：“如果我们将社会联系视为人类基本需求，我们就不能低估与世隔绝的风险，即使与世隔绝者并不感到孤独。”

Being lonely and being alone are two different things. While older people might be alone much of the time, this doesn't mean they are unhappy about it.

孤独和孤身一人是两回事。老年人也许大部分时间都是孤身一人，但这不意味着他们不喜欢那样的状态。

In fact, people can feel lonely when they're surrounded by others. Many lonely people are also married.

事实上，人们在有人相伴时也会感到孤独。很多已婚人士也会觉得孤独。

"Being unmarried is a significant risk," Holt-Lunstad told the New York Times, "but not all marriages are happy ones. We have to consider the quality of relationships, not simply their existence or quantity."

“未婚是一个重大风险，”郝特-朗斯达告诉《纽约时报》说，“不过，并不是所有婚姻都幸福。我们必须考虑婚姻的质量，不能只看结婚与否或结婚时间长短。”

It is well known that things like alcohol, diet, smoking, and air pollution can contribute to us living shorter lives.

众所周知，酒精、节食、吸烟和空气污染等因素会缩短人们的寿命。

But it's important not to overlook loneliness as something that can be detrimental to both our psychological and physical well-being too.

不过，不要忽视孤独对我们身心的危害也很重要。