23/07/2026
https://www.sciencefocus.com/wellbeing/touch-deprivation-health-wellbeing
This article is well worth the few minutes it takes to read. Here is a small snippet:
Touch can also have a remarkably powerful effect for those at the very end of life. Not only can it help diminish anxiety about the prospect of dying, touch can also convey a sense of peace, even if the person being touched is no longer capable of responding to those around them.
“Touch is the last sense that leaves us,” says Gothard.
“The brain may no longer process what we hear and what we see, but the skin still transmits signals of presence and love. Holding the hand of a dying person is no different from holding the hand of a child in the dentist’s chair or a woman in labour.”
It all shows that, from birth until death, humans are hardwired to be soothed and reassured by physical contact. In a fragmenting world where social contact is ever more fleeting, we could all benefit from more touch.
