According to a study conducted by researchers at Carnegie Mellon University, hugs actually have the ability to prevent sicknesses brought on by the stress of experiencing conflicts. The study showed that hugs have a positive effect on a person’s mental well-being, which in turn helps with their immune system and their ability to fight off illnesses.

According to the study, which was led by Professor Sheldon Cohen, hugging is a form of social support that helps alleviate stress. Stress often times contributes to the weakening of the immune system, but with the proper social support, in this case through hugging, the immune system is figuratively boosted within people if they have a high level of social support and receive more hugs. The study ultimately showed that adults who receive hugs on a regular basis deal better with illnesses associated with conflicts than adults who don’t have a high level of social support or receive hugs on a daily basis.

After filling out a questionnaire and conducting phone interviews every night for two weeks straight, 404 healthy adults were exposed to a common cold virus and monitored in quarantine. The adults who felt like they had a high level of social support and received hugs on a regular basis had a better chance of not getting sick than those who did not have the same levels of support. Of the adults that became infected with the virus, the ones who felt like they had higher social support and received more hugs had less severe symptoms than their counterparts.

While the study’s aim was to evaluate how hugs helped those dealing with the stress of conflicts, the study also showed that people who aren’t dealing with conflicts also do better with hugs as well.

So, if you’re not getting your daily does of hugs, you might want to start because besides just feeling good, they also might keep you from getting sick.