If you get hugged frequently, you may have extra protection against stress and infections. This may sound a little far-fetched, but new research from Carnegie Mellon University explains how it works.
According to the study leader, Sheldon Cohen, part of it has to do with the way your body reacts to stress. If you are frequently involved in conflicts, you’re less able to fight off viruses and infections. However, people who have social support are partially protected from the effects of stress.
With this in mind, Cohen and his team tested whether perceptions of social support are effective in protecting against stress-induced vulnerability to infection; and if frequent hugs might enhance both support and protection.
The researchers collected data on perceived support from 404 healthy adults. Each of the participants was interviewed 14 evenings in a row to assess frequency of conflicts and to discuss how many hugs they received.
Next, the participants were intentionally exposed to a common cold virus and placed in quarantine so they could be monitored for signs of infection and illness.
The researchers found that greater perceived social support and more frequent hugs reduced the risk of infection associated with stress and conflict. The hugs, in fact, were responsible for about a third of the protective effect.
“The apparent protective effect of hugs may be attributable to the physical contact itself or to hugging being a behavioral indicator of support and intimacy,” Cohen says. “Either way, those who receive more hugs are somewhat more protected from infection.”
SOURCE: Hugs Help Protect Against Colds by Boosting Social Support. News Release. Association for Psychological Science. Dec 2014.
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