Older adults' provision of informal care and support to their peers - A cornerstone of swedish society: Demographic characteristics and experiences of social isolation.

In our population, 21.5% of the older adults were providing informal care and support to their peers. Practical/instrumental help was frequently offered by younger participants (<75 years), men and respondents who were less socially isolated. On a general level, the factors that were positively associated with giving informal care and support to peers were older age, being male, retired, married/living in a relationship, living in an urban area/big city and exhibiting greater isolation. Focusing specifically on social support shows that older participants (>80) and those experiencing less social isolation (score < 24) were more engaged in social activities.  CONCLUSION: This paper is unique in exploring the informal peer-caregiver's perceptions of isolation. Data were collected during the COVID-19 pandemic; this highlights the need to recognise informal care and support between older adults and to acknowledge their contributions as an essential component of Swedish civil society, especially during a societal crisis.