Humor may make it easier to get through the day as well as generally help you enjoy your life, but... laughter is no joke. A series of studies shows that the old saying may actually be true, and that laughter is really a great medicine! What other medicine can possibly serve as a workout, possibly save you from a heart attack, help you connect to your loved-ones and even boost your immune system? Laughter can do all this and make you a generally happier person!
That's right — laughing is so much more than just something your body automatically does when something is funny. People who laugh regularly and heartily will experience so many benefits, to both their mental and physical health. You may be having a stressful and busy life, so why not put some time aside to have a good laugh with friends and family? It can do you a surprising amount of good.
What else should you know about how laughter can improve your life for the better?
Laughter Brings People Together
Of all the various benefits of laughter, perhaps one of the most important thing laughing has going for it is that it brings people together. After all, humans are very social animals and feeling isolated is one of the most important causes of depression. It isn't just actual solitude that can lead a person to feel like their isolated and alone — the worst type of isolation comes in the form of feeling disconnected within a relationship you have, from your children, at work, or from your close friends.
Of course, laughter can't fix everything. In some cases, it will take a whole lot more than a simple great joke to reconnect with your friends and family. Yet, we all recognize the power of bonding over laughter and a good joke. Humor connects people. It can break the ice when you meet someone for the first time, can kill arguments or fights, and can help you remember just how much you have in common with a loved one. Sometimes, just seeing that smile on the other person's face makes things feel so much better. Laughter really does bring people together, whether it's through watching a comedy together or sharing some silly jokes and experiences.
Laughter As Exercise
What happens when you laugh? A real, body-consuming laughing session uses lots of muscles, and not just in your face. Have you ever paid attention to the workout your abs get when you're “killing yourself laughing”? Laughter increases your heart rate, makes you breathe faster, and increases your oxygen intake. In other words, laughing is just like a good workout!
It is well established that exercising makes people feel better, but most folks probably workout to get fit or stay fit.
Ten to 15 minutes of laughing will get rid of about 50 calories. OK, so laughter will not replace your current workout regime. But, perhaps the knowledge that laughing gives you mini-workout at the very least will provide you with a good excuse when you sit down in front of the TV to watch a comedy, or a show like Candid Camera.
Laughter Is No Joke — More Health Benefits
Laughing Is Good For Your Heart
A team of cardiologists from the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore examined the effects of laughter on the cardiovascular system, and the heart in particular. Their conclusion? Laughter is so good for you that it may actually help prevent a heart attack!
Science had already found out that stress can harm the endothelium, the protective lining of the blood vessels. This can, in turn, lead to fat and cholesterol build-up inside the coronary arteries and create a great environment for a heart attack.
In this study, the research team used multiple-choice questions to find out how likely people were to react to various situations with laughter. Those with heart disease were least likely to laugh about life, and those with healthy hearts laughed most!
Laughter Boosts Your Immune System
Some studies suggest that laughter has a positive impact on a person's immune system — if you have a positive outlook on life and laugh every day, you may just have more antibodies to combat infections, and your immune cells could be stronger. Other studies into the same topic were inconclusive, so further research is needed to support the claim that laughter boosts the immune system.
What's clear is that high levels of stress have a decidedly negative effect on the immune system. And doesn't laughter make stress melt away, to some extent? I suggest that you use April Fool's Day as an excuse to test the link between laughter and immune response yourself. From this day onward, try to laugh heartily at least 10 minutes a day, and see if you get ill less!
Laughing Is Good For Diabetics
Diabetes isn't funny, but laughter does seem to have a positive effect on a diabetic's blood sugar levels. Diabetics who are anxious, sad, stressed, or scared are very likely to see their blood glucose levels soar to dangerous levels. Would the reverse be true, too? Researchers tried to find out by exposing a small group of people with Type 2 diabetes, who weren't receiving insulin therapy, to a tedious lecture one day and to a hilarious comedy the next.
While you can hardly call a study of 19 diabetics conclusive, the results did suggest that laughter is a great medicine indeed. The study's authors came up with several theories to explain the idea that laughter keeps blood glucose levels down, but were not sure how accurate any of them were. What they were certain about was the “importance of daily opportunities for laughter in patients with diabetes”!
Laughter Takes You To Another World
Let's face it — the stresses of daily life can really get to all of us sometimes. Are you having a really bad day? Laughter can distract you and take you to a whole other world. If you look on the bright side of life, you could simply forget about problems, whether they are related to work, family, relationships, friendships, finances or anything else. And if the problem is still there after you welcomed some laughter into your day, you will at least have a fresh perspective on things, that will help you find creative solutions more easily.
- Photo courtesy of Koruko on http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3ALOLCAT.JPG