Touch is good, very good

Feeling stressed? Want to be healthier? Want to live longer? Well spend half an hour cuddling on the couch with someone you like

This is a major theme in Grow Youthful backed by a lot of research � touch and physical affection can help lower stress levels and a lot more. In a month long study (1) researchers found that healthy married couples who enjoyed physical affection such as regularly holding hands, massaging each other, and cuddling showed significant changes in various measures of stress. In the study, they had this kind of contact for at least 30 minutes, four times per week. Their measures of stress enzymes were lower and feel-good hormones were higher than the non-cuddlers in the study

If you don't have a partner, you can still benefit from touch and social support. Enjoyable time with friends and other family members helps your health. Time with your pet, including touch, is a great calmer. Touch your friends, if they are comfortable with it. A meal with friends and a little laughter goes a long way for your mental health. Keeping in touch, even with the phone and email is good. And if you can afford it, any kind of massage or body-work is great

(1) Influence of a "warm touch" support enhancement intervention among married couples on ambulatory blood pressure, oxytocin, alpha amylase, and cortisol. Holt-Lunstad, J. et al., Psychosomatic Medicine 2008 Nov;70(9):976-985