How Community and Social Health Boosts Longevity

Social Health is vital, just like food and water. Many of us take time to put more effort into the gym, nutrition, and doing our 10k steps, but exercising our social skills and seeking interaction is often overlooked. According to a recent article in The Guardian, human connection and community interaction can determine our life expectancy. Traditional health advice often overlooks the value of social health and focuses on physical and mental health alone. 

Loneliness has been frequently reported in recent news. But the lens that is taken often focuses on older people and pushes a negative response framework. Loneliness affects us all. Even the social butterflies amongst us. Research suggests that negative self-talk and self-limiting beliefs can affect our connections even without us realising it. These ingredients for social anxiety are like nutrient deficiencies– we are less able to absorb the goodness from our energy sources. Or, in this case, feel a deep connection with those around us. But the word ‘lonely’ has been flooded with shame, despite it affecting us all. 

There are certain aspects of health that interact with each other; for example, caring for your physical health may allow you to interact more socially. Or, caring for your mental health helps remove those self-limiting beliefs. However, studies have shown that engagement in community activities has decreased by almost 20% in the last ten years. Less human connection can lead to an increase in an individual’s likelihood of developing the likes of dementia and heart disease. In an increasingly digital world, we need to bring back our community spirit, it is evidently detrimental. 

These studies have also shown that a new positive framework regarding ‘Social Health’ is more effective than working against ‘loneliness’. Growth mindsets and the idea of ‘Cultivating Community’ have a better impact on improving our Social Health. 

At Victoria Park Cafe, we encourage a community mindset and ensure we have created a space for all. We are met with people from all walks of life who use the park's space in many different ways, and we have had many cases where the space has been vital. We aim to be a hub for all community events here at Victoria Park Frome and encourage individuals to approach us with their projects and ideas. We want to take this opportunity to create workshops and events that adopt this positive framework in promoting Social Health. We include many groups who may have faced adversity or further disadvantage in the social sphere, as well as families, dog walkers, old, young and anyone in between. We invite you to join us in improving the social health of our community by visiting the cafe or attending one of our events! We look forward to continuing the cultivation project and welcoming more and more visitors to participate in our positive social health mission!