The Healthy Effects of Touch — Come From Moving the Skin

Even During Quarantine, You Need A 'Daily Dose Of Touch'

Anne Strainchamps, To The Best of Our Knowledge 

Dr. Tiffany Field, founder and director of the Touch Research Institute at the University of Miami Medical School and a pioneer in the field of therapeutic touch

The positive effects — the healthy effects of touch — come from moving the skin. That stimulates the pressure receptors under the skin, which send messages to the brain — mainly to the vagus nerve, which has branches in virtually every part of the body — that slow the nervous system down. So you get decreases in heart rate, blood pressure and stress hormones. You get changes in the brain waves to theta activity, or relaxation waves. You also increase the natural killer cells, which ward off viral cells, bacterial cells, and cancer cells. 

Touching and moving the skin has a huge effect on the immune system.

But just think about the fact that we’re washing our hands all the time now. Assuming you’re doing it correctly, you’re moving the skin of your hands. And that helps you stay healthy not only by washing the virus off, but by stimulating your pressure receptors.

What I'm saying to single people who don't have anybody touching them is that they need to do self-touch. They need to do yoga. They need to walk around the room stimulating the pressure receptors on their feet. They can get the stimulation they need by lying on the floor and doing crunches or sit ups. All of that will contribute very similar effects to being hugged or just shaking someone else’s hand.

AS: Sounds like we should be thinking about touch the same way we think about diet and exercise?

TF: You’re right on. It’s just like that. We all need a daily dose of touch.