Touch as a key sense for physical and mental health

Touch is of great importance to humans and can be beneficial in reducing pain, depression and the anxiety in both adults and children, whether it is physical contact with people, animals or objects, including robots.

Researchers from Ruhr University (Germany) conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of 212 studies in which 12,966 people had participated with the aim of exploiting the health benefits of physical contact.

Data suggest that touch is beneficial for a wide range of physical and mental health outcomes, both in healthy individuals and in clinical settings, and for all ages.

Touch is of great importance for human beings. In fact, it is the first sense that develops in newborns and the most direct way we interact with the world.

The study indicates that there were no differences in health benefits for adults when comparing touch applied by a known person or by a health professional.

Tactile interventions “They were especially effective” to regulate cortisol levels and increase weight in newborns, as well as to reduce pain, feelings of depression, and state or trait anxiety in adults.

However, in the case of newborns, contact with their parents was more beneficial, indicates the research, published in Nature Human Behavior.

The greatest mental health benefits were seen when people were touched by other people rather than touching an object or robot, although the benefits were similar for physical health.

No differences were seen in physical or mental health benefits in adults or newborns based on the type of touch, between massages or hugs.

However, they found “significantly greater health benefits” in head touch compared to arm and torso touch, so the authors estimate that head touch, such as a facial or scalp massage, “could be especially beneficial.”

In any case, they point out that unidirectional touch was more beneficial than bidirectional touch. The frequency of contact also appears to matter, with more frequent interventions having more beneficial effects.

The authors suggest that future research should explore the effectiveness of different touch interventions in large controlled trials to ensure the robustness of these results.

Additionally, research could examine whether tactile interventions are equally effective in different cultures, as most current research comes from cultures in middle- and high-income countries.