Love & Blog
Cuddle yourself healthy!
13 Jul 2016

Cuddle yourself healthy!

Every year on the 21st of January is National Hug Day – On this day everybody should be hugging away! Therefore it doesn’t matter if you are hugging with your partner, with your best friend or with your loyal four legged friend.

Hugs don’t just help reduce stress and fear, they can lower blood pressure. Whilst the hormone Oxytocin is being released your wellbeing and your brain strength are flourishing.

Whilst cuddling the amount of Oxytocin increases in the hypophysis (Glandula pituitaria). Because of this the social competence becomes easier between parents, children or partners. Pairs with good relationships will have an increased Oxytocin level. Studies have also shown, that children that simply have experienced soothing behaviour from their mothers, this means that they get more Oxytocin from such behaviour, therefore the children have a higher amount of Oxytocin in their Hypophysis. However this procedure only works if both people have a lot of trust and the natural feelings are already present.

But be careful! If the two people don’t want to hug or the trust isn’t fully there yet then it can cause the stress hormone cortisol to be released. That then makes hugging feel threatening.

That’s why the event “free hugs” only makes sense if everybody knows that it is just a harmless gag.