In Good Health – Is Laughter Really the Best Medicine?
May 16, 2010 | In: Uncategorized
Image : http://www.flickr.com
When you laugh out loud, you might notice a slight improvement in the way you feel. Why is that? Sure you feel good, but is there science behind the effects of laughter? Is laughter really the best medicine?
The Study of Humor
There are numerous well-designed studies suggesting that not only can humor improve your mood, but it can potentially prevent illness. From Sigmund Freud’s 1905 book, The Joke and Its Relation to the Unconscious, to the currently three bimonthly medical journals dedicated to “health and humor”, the science of humor is no laughing matter. In fact, just try and sit down to read a few of these articles or Freud’s book, not only will you not be laughing, but you’ll more than likely be bored to tears.
It’s amazing how many people have been looking at the science behind humor and how serious they take the endeavor. From all their hard work and theorizing on why we laugh and for what purpose, there are now some generally well-accepted answers. The Pattern Recognition Theory explains that humor occurs when the brain recognizes a pattern that surprises it, and that this recognition is rewarded with the experience of laughter. A perfect example is playing the game of peek-a-boo with a baby. This simple game gets any baby cracking up laughing, which in turn makes you smile and laugh. And if you don’t have a baby to play peek a boo with, just imagine the sight and sounds of a laughing baby… bet you at least start to smile a little.
As your language skills develop you begin to get a handle on linguistic humor, which obviously becomes more sophisticated than peek-a-boo. This is when our differences in finding what is humorous changes. Because we all develop in very different settings, the context in which you are surrounded causes you to recognize different patterns and therefore find different stories, events, and actions funny or not. More simply put, your age, along with where and how you grew up, are the major factors for determining what is humorous to you individually.
Another theory, The Superiority Theory, says we laugh at someone else’s mistakes that gives us a sense of superiority and creates some separation from the situation so we can laugh at it. A master of this type of humor is Jim Carey from the famed movies such as “Dumb and Dumber” and “Ace Ventura.” These movies are perfect examples of how outlandish buffoonery can make us laugh because most of us do not live such unpredictable lifestyles.
Take Two Jokes and Call Me in the Morning
Surely you’ve heard the old adage, “laughter is the best medicine”, and that is quite true. Physiologically when you laugh your blood pressure drops, there is greater blood flow throughout your bodies, stress hormones drop and the biological fight-or-flight response is inhibited. This allows you to relax, more easily solve problems, and relate to others or socially connect. Studies have also showed that you are 30 times more likely to laugh within a group than when alone, that on average most people laugh 18 times a day, and laughing contracts 15 different facial muscles.
And, if you’re looking to keep in good shape this year, you’ll be pleased to know that laughing actually burns calories! In fact, if you’re able to laugh 100 times a day you will burn the same amount of calories as riding a bicycle for 15 minutes! In addition to the facial muscle contractions, during a bout of strong belly laughing, you know, the kind that really gets you rolling, you move your abdominal, respiratory, leg and back muscles-a total body workout!
The most impressive effect laughter can have on the body is an improved immune system. Laughing can dramatic improve the effectiveness of our natural killer cells, which specifically target cancer cells and viruses. Laughter also appears to regulate the number of T- and B-cells, which are disease-fighting antibodies.
In a recent study of 100 centenarians it comes as no surprise that daily laughter was found to be “very important” for healthy aging. So make it a point to laugh out loud each and every day! If you do, you’ll be well on your way to being the happiest and healthiest you can possibly be.
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