Human contact is crucial in our development from an early age. Through physical contact, we have evolved complicated languages, cultures, and means of emotional expression.
However, non-sexual human touch risks becoming uncommon, if not obsolete, in today’s technologically advanced world.
Despite the advantages of digital development, it is crucial to maintain the human touch for us to flourish.
Consider how French scientists saw a creature approximating a human running through the woods 200 years ago.
He was caught, and it was discovered that he was 11 years old and had spent much of his childhood running loose in the forests.
The young child, named “Victor,” was initially thought to be stupid; however, French medical professionals and psychiatrists later concluded that a lack of human physical contact had hampered his social and developmental abilities.
Physical Touch is Linked in Scientific Studies in These Significant Areas:
1. Lessening of Violence
Violence increases when children receive less human contact.
James W. Prescott, an American developmental psychologist, claims that the lack of mother-child attachment is a factor in the rise of aggression in society.
According to studies on child development, emotional disturbances can last a lifetime if there isn’t a physical connection and a healthy attachment between an adult and a child.
2. A Rise in Interpersonal Confidence
Human contact promotes interpersonal ties. The orbitofrontal cortex of the brain, which is connected to emotions of reward and compassion, is activated by physical contact, according to research by neuroscientist Edmund Ross.
His work is cited by Daniel Keltner, the Greater Good Science Center’s founding director and professor of psychology at the University of California, Berkeley.
Studies, according to Keltner, “show that oxytocin, also known as “the love hormone,” can be released by a straightforward touch.”
According to scientists Auvray, Myin, and Spence, our epidermis has receptors that can stimulate erogenous zones or pain-responsive nerve endings to elicit emotional reactions directly.
3. Financial Benefit
Physical touch is associated with economic benefits, likely because “touch signals safety and confidence; it calms,” according to Keltner.
Simple warm contact reduces heart rate stress. The vagus nerve, which plays a crucial role in our capacity for kindness, is activated by it.
NBA teams, for instance, win more games when their athletes interact with one another more.
4. A Healthier Immune System and Reduced Illness
Additionally, physical contact may reduce illness. Women who receive more hugs from their partners have lower heart rates and blood pressure.
This is according to a study from the University of North Carolina: “Hugs strengthen the immune system… The Solar Plexus Chakra is activated by the pressure applied to the sternum and the resulting emotional energy.
By regulating and balancing the body’s production of white blood cells, the thymus gland, which is stimulated by this, maintains you healthy and free from disease.
Receiving a pat on the back and eye contact from the doctor may increase a patient’s chance of surviving a complex illness, according to research from the University of California’s School of Public Health.
5. More Positive Team Relations
The Moral Molecule author Paul Zak asserts, “We touch to start and sustain cooperation.”
He conducted a “neuroeconomics” study, claiming that handshakes and hugs will likely release the neurochemical oxytocin, increasing the likelihood that someone will consider you “like family,” even if you have only recently met.
6. More Mental Closeness That Is Not Sexual
Interpersonal touch has a significant emotional effect on us. Studies have demonstrated that a light touch on a woman’s arm can increase a man’s chances of finding love.
Another study revealed that two-thirds of women would consent to dance with a man who touched her arm just before asking.
7. Increased Interest in Studying
Teachers’ platonic interactions with their pupils help them learn.
A recent study discovered that students who receive a hand pat from a librarian report liking the library more and are more apt to use it again.
8. General Health
People need human contact to flourish. According to Keltner, “Recent studies have revealed amazing benefits of touch for both physical and emotional well-being.
In the study, it was found that touch is essential for human connection, communication, and health.
According to Sharon K. Farber, “Being touched and touching someone else are fundamental forms of human interaction.
More and more people seek professional touchers, such as chiropractors, physical therapists, massage therapists, and martial arts instructors.
Others even wait to be touched while waiting for a physical evaluation in doctors’ offices for ailments without organic cause.
Final Thoughts on Physical Touch
The fundamental component of human growth and civilization is physical touch.
These factors may inadvertently be adversely impacted by the increasing preference for digital media over personal physical contact.
As well as the social and legal prohibitions on physical contact in our workplaces and schools.
In an age of mediated communication, we should purposefully hang on to human contact to promote a secure social environment.
