Going out with friends can help you live longer, aging experts claim, while loneliness could have the same impact as smoking

Going out and socializing with friends can contribute to a longer life, according to an aging expert.

But loneliness can have the same negative impact as smoking, revealed Professor Sarah Harper, the University of Oxford University’s first professor of gerontology, the study of aging.

Regularly interacting with other people can reduce the rate at which we age, while loneliness is “really bad for us”, Professor Harper said.

The expert suggested that we can train our cells to become ‘resilient’ against aging by spending time with others.

“Now we understand this relationship between what we call the cell and society, and we can make a difference (against ageing),” she told the BBC Inside Health podcast.

“An article recently came out saying that 60 percent of our aging can be controlled by the way we live.”

Frequently interacting with other people can slow down the rate at which we age. File image

Professor Harper said the research is still in its early stages but will be “very important” in the future. He added that there is “very strong evidence” that loneliness can have the same impact as smoking.

Professor Harper suggested that by doing ‘health activities’ we can keep ourselves mentally and physically relaxed.

She said this includes a good diet, exercise and “being socially interactive.”

Last year, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared loneliness an urgent global health threat, with the US surgeon general saying its mortality effects are equivalent to smoking 15 cigarettes a day.