Hugs Could Actually Make You Healthier. Watch Out Loneliness, The Human Element Of Health Returns!

Photo: Kenny Eliason, Unsplash

So Reach Out And Touch Someone…-With Their Consent, Of Course:

And now for something a little bit lighter and different.

It’s easy to think that in the quest to keep improving your health,

That it’s all supplements and weird diets; that there’s always a new pill to swallow.

But in a western world experiencing a Loneliness Epidemic,

It’s even easier to overlook The Human Element.

And if a German team is right, hugging your Mom is for more than just Mothers’ Day…

The Short Answer:

• Loneliness can be dangerous for your health.
• We’re in the middle of a loneliness epidemic.
• A German team just found some great results on the opposite: physical contact & hugs!
• They looked at 130+ studies and 10,000 subjects.
• They found that contact improves Pain, Anxiety, Depression, Blood-Pressure, and Heart-Rate, at the minimum.
• The contact did not have to last long or come from someone close.
• Even robots & weighted-blankets helped for most things.
• Babies need contact from their parents, but adults are not that particular.
• Previous studies have also shown positive results for Stress, Rates of Illness, The Common Cold, Women’s Happiness, Anxiety in Low Self-Esteem People, Chronic Pain Sufferers.
• Interestingly, Loneliness increases the odds of all these issues becoming problems by at least 29%.
• Previous studies on how to live to 100 show that high-quality social networks are part of that formula.
• Many facets of health are easy to overlook. The Human Element is one of them.

Read on to find out the details…

Stealth Health – Are You The Average Of Five People?:

Now before we get started, let’s just set aside all those jokes about Germans having to run a scientific study to find out that giving your Mom a hug is a good idea.

We have introduced the idea of, “Stealth Health” here before.

And the self-help/entrepreneur-types will tell you your income is the average of the 5 people you spend the most time with.

What if your health is also the average of them, too?

130+ Studies Show Hugs Actually Improve Your Health:

So in some work that looks poised to help the loneliness epidemic a little,

The Bochum team looked at 130+ studies covering 10,000 subjects and found that [consensual] touch is healthy.

It improves at least:

1) Pain
2) Depression
3) Anxiety
4) Blood-pressure
5) Heart rate

Funnily enough, the touch didn’t have to last that long.

And in a result the weighted-blanket crowd has known for at least a decade,

The touch didn’t even require another human being.

For Adults, A Little Bit Helps. Even From A Robot!:

Other interesting items turned up by the study include:

The most effective touch for babies is from their parents.

But adults don’t have many restrictions at all.
Even a touch from a robot still gives them the same benefits.

You don’t even need to get a marathon back-massage or something.

Being touched or hugged by another person or thing can happen for just a short time and be just as effective.

So yes, ze Germans have figured out that hugs are good for you.

More Hugging Benefits From Previous Work!:

Some other previous studies have found that hugging also improves:

1) Stress
2) Rates of illness
3) Strength & severity of the common-cold
4) Women’s happiness
5) Serious anxiety in low self-esteem people
6) Chronic pain in people with fibromyalgia

So just think of how much good you could do by going to see your Mom on Mothers’ Day and give her a big hug!

By Contrast, The Loneliness Epidemic Can Be Dangerous:

Interestingly enough, if you look up some of the health risks that come from hugging’s polar-opposite, Loneliness, you get these:

1) 29% Increased Risk of Heart Disease
2) 32% Increased Risk of Stroke
3) 50% Increased Risk of Dementia for older adults
4) 2x Risk of Developing Depression
5) Increased risk Anxiety & Depression for those lonely in childhood
6) 60% Increased Risk of All-Cause Early Mortality

That’s probably a great reason why one of the top factors in living to 100 is high-quality social networks.

In addition to those problems, there are even more over at the loneliness superpost.

Some Facets Of Your Health Are Too Easy To Overlook:

So, The Human Element is one of the easiest to overlook when it comes to building-out your health.

Especially in an individualistic and lonely society.

It’s right up there with hydration.

And according to one of the early pioneers in family therapy, we might even need a minimum number of hugs every day as well. (four)

So get out there and go to a little celebration for Mom and make each other a little bit healthier!

References & Links:

• Source: RUB
• Source Study:
Nature – A systematic review and multivariate meta-analysis of the physical and mental health benefits of touch interventions