Nurturing Our Connections to Others: leveraging human bonds to increase longevity

When thinking about living longer, we typically think of wholefoods plant-based diets, exercise, or even sleep quality. However, one of the most powerful and most overlooked predictors of long-term health is the quality of our relationships with others.

Human beings are social animals

I grew up in a very small village in Portugal, with no more than 100 inhabitants. Most people in the village were retired, lived on their own, and were over 70, 80, and even 90 years old of age. Anyone having an outside in look into the people that lived in my village would think that most of them lived very lonely lives. However, this could not be further away from the truth.

In this small community, not only everyone knew each other, but they also relied on each other to go about their daily tasks, from farming activities to gossiping! And many of them had a key role in the community. One of my fondest memories of engaging with the community, was the daily routine of gathering for coffee after lunch. You didn’t need an invitation to just show up at someone’s door and come in for 15-30 minutes, grab a coffee and catch up on the latest news in the village. And believe there was a lot more drama going on, than you would assume!

Growing up, this environment just felt normal to me, but looking back now, I can now see how this community was a masterclass in the longevity benefits that living in community brings. Those small, consistent moments of connection add up, and they protect health in ways we often underestimate. Social connection is linked to better resilience, healthier behaviours, stronger immune function, and lower long-term health risks across multiple body systems (5,6; 9).

The science behind social connections and longevity

A meta-analysis (research with data from more than 300,000 participants) found that people with stronger social relationships had a significantly higher likelihood of living longer (5).  These are some of the effect that connecting with others has in our body:

1. Stress buffering: Supportive relationships are linked with being able to better regulate stress and, as a result, reduce strain on the cardiovascular and immune systems (9; 6).

2. Immune support: Social ties have been linked with stronger resistance to infection and differences in susceptibility, famously shown in research on vulnerability to the common cold (3).

3. Behavioural reinforcement: Your social environment shapes your daily behaviour, such as what you eat, how you move, and how you cope with life events. Social networks can influence health patterns over time, including weight-related behaviours (2).

4. Cognitive and emotional resilience: Stronger social networks are associated with lower risk of cognitive decline and dementia (4).

Taken together, this suggests social connection isn’t just “good for the soul”, it’s a modifiable factor that can influence both healthspan (how well we live) and lifespan (how long we live) (5; 6).

Modern life is leading us to more contact with less connection

Technology evolved in a way that allow most of us to be “always on” in contact with our networks, while also being socially undernourished. Many of us are spending hours consuming online updates without having a single moment of genuine social connection with laughter or tears over a real conversation.

From a longevity point of view, this matters because loneliness and social isolation are associated with higher health risks over time, and research has linked loneliness or social isolation with increased mortality risk (7). Online communication tools can be useful and practical, but it doesn’t replace the protective effects of consistent, emotionally supportive, real-life relationships (6; 7).

Social connections is one of the cornerstones of longevity in the world’s Blue Zones

Just like in the village where I’ve grew up, social connections are built into the daily life of the Blue Zone’s centenarians, and it’s easy to spot patterns of this between different regions in the world (1). In Okinawa, Japan, traditions like moai, which are small, consistent support circles, help people stay socially anchored across the lifespan (10). In Sardinia, Italy, community routines, shared meals, and intergenerational life support represent belonging and identity (8). And in the Nicoya Peninsula, Costa Rica, everyday neighbourly contact and elder integration are part of normal living (1).

While there are differences in how each of these cultures drive social connections, there’s a consistent theme of prioritising togetherness and embed these as part of everyday routine, not squeezed in only when life calms down (1, 10).

5 ways to prioritise and nurture social connections in your daily life

These are 5 ways to get you started in building more real social connections, that will help you live better for longer. Pick one to start with, keep it simple and be consistent:

1. Practice micro-connections daily by smiling at your barista, chatting with your neighbour, or thanking a colleague at work. These brief but genuine interactions will compound over time and strengthen your community ties.

2. Connect with purpose by joining social groups that aligns with your values, such as community cooking, volunteering, a walking group, or a class. Shared meaning builds connection faster and more meaningfully (6).

3. Be present and put your phone away when spending time with others. Eye contact, body language, and undivided attention are invisible threads that strengthen trust.

4. Eat together more often and make a point to share even quick meals. At work, or at home, make a point to enjoy those minutes together and create a sense of belonging. If you can make it a tradition, even better!

5. Keep traditions alive and ensure you are creating shared memories and providing continuity. Find any excuse you can to celebrate small milestones, revive a cultural tradition, or simply host an annual dinner.

Nutritional support that recognises how social connections impact your healthspan

I help clients create comprehensive nutritional plans that recognise how social wellbeing directly impacts eating behaviours, nutrient absorption, and metabolic health. Whilst I draw on lifestyle medicine principles as a framework, understanding that nutrition, physical activity, sleep, stress management, social connections, and avoiding risky substances all interconnect, my primary focus is providing specialised nutritional support that accounts for these lifestyle factors.

Strong relationships support better nutritional outcomes: shared meals improve dietary adherence, social support reduces stress-related eating, and community connections make it easier to maintain the wholefood plant-based eating patterns that research shows are most effective for preventing chronic disease and supporting longevity. My nutritional therapy approach addresses how social isolation can disrupt eating patterns, appetite regulation, and digestive health, creating personalised nutrition plans that work with your social environment rather than against it.

Please do get in touch if you would like nutritional therapy support that recognises how social connections impact your eating habits and helps you create sustainable wholefood plant-based nutrition patterns to help you live better for longer.

Coming next: Voluntarily and involuntarily, we expose our bodies to toxins daily. In the final post of the Living Better for Longer blog series focused on leveraging plant-based eating to increase healthspan, we’ll look at some suggestions for what to reduce and replace in our lives for maximum longevity.

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References

1. Buettner, D. (2012). The Blue Zones: 9 lessons for living longer from the people who’ve lived the longest. National Geographic Books.

2. Christakis, N. A., & Fowler, J. H. (2007). The Spread of Obesity in a Large Social Network over 32 Years. New England Journal of Medicine, 357(4), 370–379. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMsa066082

3. Cohen, S. (1997). Social Ties and Susceptibility to the Common Cold. JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association, 277(24), 1940. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.1997.03540480040036

4. Fratiglioni, L. et al. (2000). Influence of social network on occurrence of dementia: a community-based longitudinal study. The Lancet, 355(9212), 1315–1319. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(00)02113-9

5. Holt-Lunstad, J., Smith, T. B., & Layton, J. B. (2010). Social Relationships and Mortality Risk: A Meta-analytic Review. PLoS Medicine, 7(7), e1000316. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1000316

6. Holt-Lunstad, J. (2018). Why Social Relationships Are Important for Physical Health: A Systems Approach to Understanding and Modifying Risk and Protection. Annu. Rev. Psychol, 69, 437–458. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-psych-122216

7. Holt-Lunstad, J. (2021). Loneliness and Social Isolation as Risk Factors: The Power of Social Connection in Prevention. In American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine (Vol. 15, Issue 5, pp. 567–573). SAGE Publications Inc. https://doi.org/10.1177/15598276211009454

8. Poulain, M. et al. (2004). Identification of a geographic area characterized by extreme longevity in the Sardinia island: the AKEA study. Experimental Gerontology, 39(9), 1423–1429. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.exger.2004.06.016

9. Uchino, B. N. (2006). Social Support and Health: A Review of Physiological Processes Potentially Underlying Links to Disease Outcomes. Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 29(4), 377–387. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10865-006-9056-5

10. Willcox, D. C., Willcox, B. J., & Suzuki, m. (2014). The Okinawa Program: how the world’s longest-lived people achieve everlasting health—and how you can too. Clarkson Potter.