2024-07-06 04:24:00
Today, France 5 Health’s Géraldine Zamansky is talking to us about a beautiful French discovery that says the joy of a kiss on the cheek remains the same no matter how old we get. Researchers speculate that hair has both a protective and “sensory” role. A study reminds us of the importance of touch in soothing older adults.
franceinfo: How sensitive is this area of the face still over the decades?
Geraldine Zamanski: Of course, there’s no need to intensify the kisses you give grandma on the cheek, but you may need to be a little louder to compensate for her hearing loss. These are the results of a study that compared the evolution of sensitivity in the fingers, forearms and cheeks between the ages of 20 and 75.
To everyone’s surprise, the cheeks maintained their best performance, as Jean-Marc Aimonetti, who organized the CNRS-Aix-Marseille University laboratory, explained to me This amazing research. Even at age 75, the cheeks can still detect the equivalent of very slight airflow.
But how do they measure this sensitivity?
We thank the 96 women for their patience who agreed to spend approximately two hours treating them. They were blindfolded in a small room away from the noise while very fine filaments were applied to different areas of the skin with more or less subtle pressure. I assure you, as Jean-Marc Imonetti clarified to me, there are indeed times of interruption.
Most importantly, he explained to me, the greatest loss of sensitivity is in the fingers. They face multiple sources of “wear and tear.” Cooking, gardening, manual labor…the skin hardens and some of the receptors disappear. It has nothing to do with the forearm, which is still very sensitive. This is thanks to the frequent protection of clothes and especially hair in the tropics!
Can hair increase sensitivity?
Rather, they act as a kind of additional antenna. Their slightest movement is transmitted to receptors in the skin. I asked Jean-Marc Aimonetti this question: This also applies to the fine fuzz that covers women’s cheeks. Also, why were there only women in this study? Because she started doing further research on moisturizers.
This time the plan is to restore parity with male surveys. (For example, find out whether shaving every day changes things for men.) But one thing is for sure: If we take good care of our skin, it can better maintain its sensitivity. Sunscreen, hydration, drinking water and creams, even the very basics…think of this summer and enjoying receiving – longed for – kisses on the cheek for a long time!
Research de Léonard Samain-Aupi, Mariama Dione, Edith Ribot-Ciscar, Rochelle Ackerley, Jean-Marc Aimonetti – Aix-Marseille University, CNRS, CRPN (Research Center in Psychology and Neuroscience – UMR 7077), Marseille, France.
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#feeling #kiss #cheek #decades