Why Are People Ticklish? Causes And Prevention
Maybe your like
- Health Conditions
Health Conditions
- Alzheimer's & Dementia
- Anxiety
- Asthma & Allergies
- Atopic Dermatitis
- Breast Cancer
- Cancer
- Cardiovascular Health
- COVID-19
- Diabetes
- Endometriosis
- Environment & Sustainability
- Exercise & Fitness
- Eye Health
- Headache & Migraine
- Health Equity
- HIV & AIDS
- Human Biology
- Leukemia
- LGBTQIA+
- Men's Health
- Mental Health
- Multiple Sclerosis (MS)
- Nutrition
- Parkinson's Disease
- Psoriasis
- Sexual Health
- Ulcerative Colitis
- Women's Health
- Health Products
Health Products
All- Nutrition & Fitness
- Vitamins & Supplements
- CBD
- Sleep
- Mental Health
- At-Home Testing
- Men’s Health
- Women’s Health
- Discover
News
- Latest News
- Medicare 2026 Costs
Original Series
- Medical Myths
- Honest Nutrition
- Through My Eyes
- New Normal Health
Podcasts
All- Artificial sweeteners and brain aging: What we know so far
- Does the Mediterranean diet hold the key to longevity?
- AMA: Registered dietitian answers 5 key questions about fiber and weight loss
- Health misinformation and disinformation: How to avoid it
- Brain health, sleep, diet: 3 health resolutions for 2025
- 5 things everyone should know about menopause
- Tools
General Health
- Drugs A-Z
- Health Hubs
- Newsletter
- Medicare Plans by State
Health Tools
- Find a Doctor
- BMI Calculators and Charts
- Blood Pressure Chart: Ranges and Guide
- Breast Cancer: Self-Examination Guide
- Sleep Calculator
Quizzes
- RA Myths vs Facts
- Type 2 Diabetes: Managing Blood Sugar
- Ankylosing Spondylitis Pain: Fact or Fiction
- Connect
About Medical News Today
- Who We Are
- Our Editorial Process
- Content Integrity
- Conscious Language
Find Community
- Bezzy Breast Cancer
- Bezzy MS
- Bezzy Migraine
- Bezzy Psoriasis
Follow Us
Medically reviewed by Stacy Sampson, D.O. — Written by Zawn Villines — Updated on July 20, 2023- Why am I ticklish?
- Why only sometimes?
- Why am I not ticklish?
- Babies and animals
- Prevention
- Takeaway
People vary in how sensitive they are to tickling. Some people are only ticklish sometimes, while others are not ticklish at all.
Tickling can be a fun game, a temporary annoyance, or a deeply unpleasant experience, depending on a person’s tickle response.
Scientists have discussed the tickle response for hundreds of years, yet researchers are only just beginning to understand why some people are ticklish, and what purpose this strange response might serve.
Why am I ticklish?
Share on PinterestResearchers do not fully understand why people are ticklish and what evolutionary benefit tickling might offer, although there are several possible explanations.
There are two types of tickling, with different causes:
- Knismesis is when a light skin irritation, such as a bug walking on the skin, triggers an urge to brush it away. Some believe this response may protect against insect bites. A person can tickle themselves in this way.
- Gargalesis is more intense tickling, the kind that causes people to laugh when someone repeatedly touches a sensitive area of the body. People cannot tickle themselves in this way.
Some people believe that the tickle response might be protective. The most ticklish body parts are also the most vulnerable, such as the abdomen and throat. An automatic reflex-like response to push away the cause of the tickle could help protect these sensitive areas.
Tickling may be a reflexive response. Some people do not enjoy being tickled, but it can still cause a laughter reflex. However, in the same way that a person may cry when cutting onions without necessarily feeling sad, laughter does not always indicate enjoyment.
In 2013, a group of scientists placed people in a brain scanner and then tickled their feet. They found that an area of the brain related to involuntary responses (the hypothalamus) was active when tickling generated laughter. This suggests that the tickle response is involuntary.
The authors also noticed that the brain might process tickling as a painful experience. It might explain why some people recoil in response to tickling, and why many tickling games involve chasing someone who is trying to get away.
Another 2013 fMRI study found that the brain responded differently depending on whether laughter resulted from tickling or from joking with friends. This supports the idea that ticklishness is a reflex-like response.
Why am I only ticklish sometimes?
People are more ticklish when the tickling catches them by surprise. This might explain why people cannot tickle themselves.
A person’s awareness of their ticklishness might, therefore, affect how ticklish they are.
The tickle response partly depends on a person’s mood. People are often less ticklish if they are feeling sad or angry.
A 2016 study of rat ticklishness found that anxiety made them less responsive to tickling. This might also be true in humans.
A person’s ticklishness also depends on who is tickling them. The tickling of a trusted friend is likely to elicit a stronger tickle response than that of a stranger.
Why are some people ticklish but not others?
Researchers do not know why some people are more ticklish than others. Some speculate that ticklishness might be genetic, but there is no conclusive research to support this theory.
Some people may be ticklish on certain parts of the body but not others. For instance, one person could be very ticklish on their feet, but not under their armpits.
Some people are more sensitive to touch than others, so skin sensitivity can play a role in how ticklish a person is. A person with a loss of feeling in a particular part of the body, or with desensitized nerves, would be less likely to experience the tickling response.
Are babies and animals ticklish?
Tickling is not unique to humans, which indicates that it evolved to benefit both humans and other animals.
Other mammals, including apes and mice, also show signs of being ticklish. Apes play tickle games with one another and mice will chirp on tickling.
Babies do not respond to tickling with laughter until they are around 6 months old. Some researchers believe that babies only become ticklish when they learn that tickling should be funny.
However, laughter does not always indicate pleasure, and early research suggests that even when babies do not see tickling causing laughter in others, they still eventually laugh as a result of tickling.
Can you stop yourself from being ticklish?
If being ticklish is a reflex, there might not be much a person can do to prevent the sensation.
Tickling is more intense when it comes as a surprise, so people could place their hands on those of the tickler to try to reduce ticklishness. This would allow them to predict what the tickler is doing, and might even trick their brain into thinking they are tickling themselves.
Some people believe that they can desensitize themselves to tickling through repetition. People who are very ticklish can get people to tickle them for practice.
However, scientific research has not uncovered a specific strategy that will help people become less ticklish.
Takeaway
Though it is a nearly universal human experience, researchers still do not fully understand the tickle response. It does not seem to link to particular personality traits or physical attributes, although people with nerve damage or a decreased sensitivity to pain may not be ticklish.
People who suddenly lose their tickling reflex should see a doctor. A significant change in nervous system response could indicate a problem relating to the nerves.
Different people experience tickling in different ways, so while tickling can be fun for one person, it may be unpleasant for another, even if they still laugh as a reflex. Always ask a person for their consent before tickling them.
- Neurology / Neuroscience
- Psychology / Psychiatry
How we reviewed this article:
SourcesMedical News Today has strict sourcing guidelines and relies on peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions, and medical journals and associations. We only use quality, credible sources to ensure content accuracy and integrity. You can learn more about how we ensure our content is accurate and current by reading our editorial policy.- Harris, C. R. (2012, January 31). Tickling. In V. S. Ramachandran (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Human Behavior, 611–615http://charris.ucsd.edu/articles/Harris_EHB2012.pdf
- Ishiyama, S., & Brecht, M. (2016, November 11). Neural correlates of ticklishness in the rat somatosensory cortex [Abstract]. Science, 354(6,313), 757–760http://science.sciencemag.org/content/354/6313/757
- Wattendorf, E., Westermann, B., Fiedler, K., Kaza, E., Lotze, M., & Celio, M. R. (2013, June 1). Exploration of the neural correlates of ticklish laughter by functional magnetic resonance imaging. Cerebral Cortex, 23(6), 1280–1289https://academic.oup.com/cercor/article/23/6/1280/426218
- Wildgruber, D., Szameitat, D. P., Ethofer, T., Brück, C., Alter, K., Grodd, W., & Kreifelts, B. (2013, May 8). Different types of laughter modulate connectivity within distinct parts of the laughter perception network. PLoS ONE, 8(5), e63441http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0063441
Share this article
Medically reviewed by Stacy Sampson, D.O. — Written by Zawn Villines — Updated on July 20, 2023Latest news
- To keep your heart healthy, try drinking more orange juice
- Eating kimchi daily for 12 weeks may help regulate immune system
- Supplement mix helps reduce tumor aggressiveness in deadly brain cancer
- 6 depression symptoms in midlife linked to almost 50% higher dementia risk
- Eating more ultra-processed foods linked to higher Crohn's disease risk
Related Coverage
- How to stop or reduce a stutterMedically reviewed by Timothy J. Legg, PhD, PsyD
There is no cure for a stutter, but there are several steps that can help a person reduce stuttering. These steps include quick tips and long term…
READ MORE - Fear of being touched: Causes and treatments for haphephobiaMedically reviewed by Timothy J. Legg, PhD, PsyD
Haphephobia is an anxiety disorder characterized by a fear of being touched. In this article, we look at the causes, risk factors, and how to cope.
READ MORE - Chronic hiccups and how to stop themMedically reviewed by Elaine K. Luo, M.D.
Even when hiccups last for just a few minutes, they can be annoying. If they last for over 48 hours, they are known as chronic hiccups. Chronic…
READ MORE - Staying active in the cold: Tips and strategies to keep warmMedically reviewed by Gregory Minnis, DPT
Is it beneficial to remain active in colder weather? Read on to learn more about the potential benefits, risks to consider, and tips to help stay…
READ MORE
Tag » How To Not Be Ticklish
-
How To Stop Being Ticklish: Try This Technique - Healthline
-
Why We Are Ticklish (and How To Overcome It) - Lifehacker
-
How To Stop Yourself Being Ticklish - With Dr Emily Grossman
-
How To Trick Yourself Into Being Less Ticklish - Mental Floss
-
IWTL How To Stop Being Ticklish : R/IWantToLearn - Reddit
-
How To Become Less Ticklish - Quora
-
This Is Why Some People Are Ticklish—and Others Aren't
-
I'm Too Ticklish To Enjoy Massage - Inner Outer Health
-
How To Stop Tickling Trick, Why Am I Ticklish - Refinery29
-
How To Be Less Ticklish During Medical Exams: 10 Steps - WikiHow
-
What To Know About Ticklish Feet - WebMD
-
20 Ways To Tickle Your Partner - The Advocate
-
How To Stop Yourself Being Ticklish - With Dr Emily Grossman