A massage, a tender kiss, a heartfelt hug—touch profoundly affects your body and mind.But in recent years, touch has taken a backseat to another powerful force: technology. “I see more people on their cellphone than holding hands,” director of psychological services at Cornell University, Greg Eells, Ph.D., told the New York Times.It’s true: Americans say they spend more time touching their cellphones than family or friends. “The devices get more and more powerful the more we rely on them,” Eells tells YouBeauty. There’s that smartphone allure of “having all of human knowledge at the swipe of a finger,” he adds.QUIZ: You First: Start Your Beauty Journey HereThe challenge? “Technology conflicts with things we know are good for people’s mental health,” says Eells. Among those things essential to health and happiness: touch.Research conducted for Nivea by Kory Floyd, Ph.D., professor of human communication at Arizona State, shows that nearly half of Americans are starved for more physical contact. But it’s not just Nivea that’s invested in touch. For decades, studies have explored how a little TLC impacts our wellbeing.So put your phone on silent and find out how you can reap the benefits of touch.