Over one-point-five million people in South Korea may be at risk of "lonely death" in isolation.

The health ministry announced the results on Thursday of a survey conducted by Hankook Research last November and December of nine-thousand-471 people living alone that comprised a ten-step checklist about regular social interactions and emergency networks.

According to the results, an estimated one-point-53 million people in the country were in the group of concern, equivalent to three percent of the population and 21-point-three percent of single-person households.

The risk level was the highest among people in their 50s at 33-point-nine percent of the group, double that of those in their 70s at 16-point-two percent.

Those in their 40s to 60s were also found to be higher than those in their 70s, which a ministry official attributed to a lack of attention to health management and a sharp decline in life satisfaction from drastic changes, such as unemployment or divorce.