Older, wiser, pickier about hanging out

We all know how we worry about 'oldies' we're fond of becoming less sociable as they grow, well, older. While earlier, there was that fun uncle and hilarious aunty lighting up the Diwali evening with their wisecracks and adult childishness, the same people can, in senior citizenhood, become withdrawn, asocial. And that can even be a matter of concern regarding their well-being. But is becoming less sociable with age only worrisome? New research on non-human animals throws up some clues on how becoming less sociable with age isn't just understandable but can also be beneficial.

In an October paper, researchers found that female rhesus macaques reduced the number of social connections and spent more time socialising with 'important partners', such as kin and partners with stable connections, as they grow older. The consequences? A measurable dip in risk of the monkeys getting infected by diseases through social interaction. Another study points to female red deer being better protected in old age from parasite infection by 'staying aloof'. For humans, infection, of course, goes beyond physical disease. Mentally, older citizens are able to - and deserve to - weed out 'bakwaas' from what they find pleasant. Ergo, keeping a smaller, tighter social circle becomes a smart sanctuary the young prefer to suffer - until they grow old and wiser.