Research On Touch

Research on the benefits of touch have been conducted widely for more then 40 years. Since the founding in 1992 of the Touch Research Institute, a center solely devoted to the study of touch, extensive research in the field has grown tremendously. Following are some of the results from these studies:

• Touch stimulates weight gain in babies and improves their alertness and responsiveness. Pre-term infants gained weight 47% faster when they received short massages. The infants in these studies who received massages were more active and alert while awake, and more responsive to faces and voices. They also left the hospital six days earlier. This study was replicated in several countries with similar results as well as with full term babies a few years later.
• Touch improves cognitive performance. In this study, preschool children were divided into two groups. One group received short massages twice a week and the other group didn't. On the very first day and throughout the duration of the study (five weeks), the massaged children received better ratings on mood state, vocalization, activity and cooperation than those who received no massage. They also fell asleep more quickly at naptime.
• Touch stimulates brain development. Touch has a profound impact on how the brain develops. It stimulates the growth of dendrites, which are the connective nerve fibers between brain cells, as well as the growth of myelin sheets, the protective sheets around these fibers. Animals reared as pets have heavier and thicker brains than animals reared in isolation. Also, the brains of pet animals contain up to 25% more connective nerve fibers per brain cell than the brains of isolated animals. This suggests the possibility of similar results in children.
• Touch reduces aggression. A study on preschool aggression, performed in 2008 by the Axelsons Institute in Sweden, found that daily touch for five to ten minutes reduced aggression in four- and five-year-old preschool children.