You know that feeling you get when you have a great laugh with close friends, when you wrestle with your child or niece/nephew, or when your spouse tells you he/she loves you? It's unarguably a pretty awesome and priceless emotion, and having regular, positive social interactions (or lack thereof) has an impact on not only your mental but physical wellness.

It is common knowledge that a healthy diet, regular exercise and good hygiene habits are essential components to your physical health. However, the role of social relationships to our health, while well documented, is not as understood or regarded as a major factor to overall wellness.

A new study in the online journal PLoS Medicine shows that having strong real-life social networks, in the form of good friendships and neighborhood, has decided personal health benefits.

After analyzing 148 studies on mortality and social relationships, covering over 300,000 people on four continents over a period of seven years, researchers from Brigham Young University and the University of North Carolina determined that having a strong social network boosts the chance that you will be alive at any given age by 50%, as compared to people with weaker social relationships.

Several studies have shown since the 1970s that people who are not in close relationships are two to three times more likely to die earlier than those who are in close relationships. In fact, social isolation can have similar effects on the human body as those suffering from obesity, and loneliness is a leading cause of depression, substance abuse and eating disorders.

There are many reasons that relationships have these effects on us, Cutrona said. It could be that people take better care of themselves when they are dating someone or that their partners and friends prevent them from entering harmful situations. The human species is one that needs social interactions to survive because people make each other happy, given that they are in loving, positive relationships.

I found a couple of studies particularly interesting. One involved test subjects that were injected with a cold virus. The study recorded the number of tissues used in the subjects the week after. Subjects that were in close relationships used less tissues and healed faster than those who were not in relationships at all. Another study was done where subjects were put in painful positions, such as putting their hands in ice water. It was found that subjects who looked at a photograph of their partner did not have as severe of a reaction to the pain as those who were did not look at photographs.

The findings suggest that those whom are lonely, become more depressed which most certainly suppresses immune function, and combined with an increased likelihood to engage in unhealthy behaviors creates compromised health.

Of course we ALL are lonely from time to time and this is perfectly normal. It is how we react to loneliness is what ultimately makes a difference. Connecting with family, having regular outings with friends, volunteering, joining a club, church, playing with your pets, are just a few ways to improve your confidence, interactions, personal growth and most importantly your health!!