A hug is a sign of affection in which two or more individuals tightly embrace each other by placing their arms around each other’s neck, back, or waist. It is also a good way to reconnect with friends and family. As one may turn to drugs to help with ailments, alternatively in that same sense, hugs have also proven to have some very effective health benefits.
Hugging and other forms of physical contact may increase the hormone oxytocin and have an impact on our endogenous opioid system, according to some researchers. In simpler terms, just by giving a hug, our brains can release calming hormones that make us feel more secure and less threatened throughout the rest of the day.
According to scientists, touching someone in need of comfort can lessen that person’s stress and it can even relieve the comforter of their own stress as well.
Scientists sometimes refer to the hormone oxytocin we produce in our bodies as the “cuddle hormone” due to the fact that when we hug, touch, or sit close to another person, its levels rise causing happiness and lower levels of stress.
According to researchs from health professionals “a 20 second hug is the average time it takes your body to release oxytocin in the brain. It makes you calmer and can even lower your blood pressure. It’s proven to make us healthier and happier as it seems to have a therapeutic effect.
You may have noticed that stress greatly increases the likelihood of falling ill. This is due to the fact that stress causes our immune systems to go into overdrive, which might actually increase our susceptibility to illness. According to one study, those who experienced hugs and felt supported by others also experienced fewer symptoms of illnesses.
One may ask, “so for optimal health, how many hugs should you give each day”?
According to Virginia Satir, a family therapist, “We need four hugs a day for survival and 12 hugs a day for growth. That may sound like a lot of hugs, but it seems like more is better than not enough.”
-Hugging
Author-Roberta Appiah
