Pain Relief Strategy: Cross Your Arms? | Healthmad

Crossing your arms may confuse the brain and help fight pain, according to a new study.

Crossing your arms may confuse the brain and help fight pain, according to a new study.

The study suggests crossing arms at the wrists mixes up the brain’s perception of pain signals sent from the hands to the brain and reduces the intensity of pain.

Researchers say the findings may lead to new therapies to treat painful conditions by manipulating the brain’s perception of the body.

“Perhaps when we get hurt, we should not only “rub it better” but also cross our arms,” says researcher Giandomenico Iannetti, MD, of University College London, in a news release.

Conflicting Information From the Brain

In the study, published in Pain, researchers used a laser to deliver a pin-prick-like pain sensation to the hands of eight adult volunteers in two different positions. The first time, the participants had their hands at their sides and the second time they crossed their arms over the center of their bodies.

Read more: http://healthmad.com/medicine/pain-relief-strategy-cross-your-arms/#ixzz1N4As1FKv