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The Majority Of People Lead With Their Right Arm When Going In For A Hug.

National Hug Day or National Hugging Day occurs on January 21 and is officially recognized by the United States Copyright Office, but is not a public holiday. The purpose of the day is to help everyone show more emotion in public.

There is only one way you are supposed to celebrate the holiday, offer a hug to anyone and everyone you want. While National Hug Day and the Free Hugs Campaign share many similarities, there is no association between the two. Whether you hug a family member or a stranger, the mental and physical health benefits are the same.

  • 1560s – The word “hug” is believed to come from the word “hugga” meaning “to comfort” in the Old Norse language, first appearing approximately 450 years ago.
  • 1986 – The holiday was founded by Rev. Kevin Zaborney on March 29, 1986, in Caro, Michigan.
  • 2004 – Juan Mann (a pseudonym), a native of Sydney, Australia, gets inspired that life could be a whole lot brighter if people had more human contact. So he begins the ‘Free Hugs’ Campaign where eventually other volunteers joined him in handing out hugs to strangers
  • 2007 – To promote inspire people to do more hugging, Juan Mann writes the Illustrated Guide to Free Hugs. The lighthearted books offers reasons behind hugging, types of hugs, quotes about hugging and much more
  • 2010 – The record for the longest hug belongs to Ron O’Neil and Theresa Kerr from Canada, who hugged for an incredible 24 hours and 33 minutes in 2010! The couple wanted to raise awareness about the emotional and physical benefits of hugging.
  • 2011 – National Hugging Day is a hit in Germany
  • 2012 – Chris Christie and Barack Obama share a brief embrace on the President’s visit to New Jersey after Hurricane Sandy.
  • 2014 – In a study of more than 400 people, results seem to show that people who give and receive hugs, along with other emotional support, maybe 30% less likely to get sick from certain contagious illnesses (such as the common cold), in addition to recovering from illness more quickly
  • 2017 – In a stealthy move, the Prime Minister of India goes around then-US-President Donald Trump’s infamously awkward handshake, turning it into a giant bear hug (which is then followed by another awkward handshake).
  • Α full-body hug stimulates your nervous system while decreasing feelings of loneliness, combating fear, increasing self-esteem, defusing tension, and showing appreciation.
  • Cuddling releases oxytocin. Oxytocin is a hormone that does everything from making you feel good to helping you feel connected to others. Oxytocin is crucial in the act of cuddling, as you’ll see from its benefits popping up in the list below.
  • More hugs = lower blood pressure. The hormones that are released in the body after a hug aren’t just good for happy feelings — they can also help your physical health.
  • Cuddling relieves pain. Just as it boosts your immune system, cuddling and releasing oxytocin will decrease your pain levels.
  • Well-hugged babies are less stressed as adults.
  • Hugging can be good for our hearts. Embracing someone may warm your heart, but according to one study, a hug can be good medicine for it too.
  • Neuroeconomist Paul Zak, also known as “Dr. Love,” recommends at least eight hugs a day to be happier and enjoy better relationships. Psychotherapist Virginia Satir also famously said: “We need 4 hugs a day for survival. We need 8 hugs a day for maintenance. We need 12 hugs a day for growth.”
  • There is a hugging meditation by Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh, which brings more awareness, presence, and togetherness into people’s lives.
  • A 20-second hug, along with 10 minutes of hand-holding, also reduces the harmful physical effects of stress, including its impact on your blood pressure and heart rate.
  • Did you know that, on average, people spend one hour a month hugging? That doesn’t sound like much, but when you consider that the average hug is under 10 seconds long… that’s a lot of hugs!
  • The majority of people lead with their right arm when going in for a hug.
  • When there is a positive or negative emotion triggering the hug, you tend to go in with the left side of your body, which is controlled by the right side of your brain. The right side of your brain does a lot of processing of positive and negative emotions.
  • Even a 10-second hug can improve your health. Results of the study “Meanings of hugging” by Lena Forsell and Jan Åström identified several impacts a 10-second hug can have on your health:
    • Lower risk of heart disease
    • Fight infections
    • Stress reduction
    • Fight fatigue
    • Boost your immune system
    • Ease depression
  • Hug day by the numbers:
    • 12 — the number of hugs required by humans every day to be healthy.
    • 32% — the percentage of stress that is dispelled with a hug.
    • 20 seconds — the average time of a hug.
    • 4 — the number of hugs needed for survival.
    • 8 — the number of hugs needed by humans every day for maintenance.
    • 10 seconds — the hug time that leads to biochemical reactions in the body that boost health.
  • Some types of hugs:
    • The back-to-front hug is a type of hug you can use to provide affection to somebody from behind. For instance, you could hug your spouse back to front as they do the washing up to show your support.
    • Another option is the traditional bear hug. This type of hug is widely considered to be the strongest of the lot!
    • The cheek hug is also becoming increasingly popular too, according to the organizers. It is a type of hug that allows you to keep your distance but also offers affection. It is particularly appropriate for older people who may experience pain while in a traditional embrace.

Sources:

National Day Calendar

Faith Based Events

Useless Daily

Feel Good Family

Smalley Institute

National Today

Days of the Year


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