“Laughter is the best medicine,” as the old saying goes, and there are many indications that laughter can benefit the mind and body. A good laugh lowers blood pressure and does much more good to your health.
The clinical benefits of laughter have been studied by a number of professionals, such as Dr. Lee Berk and Dr. Stanley Tan at Loma Linda University in California. Here are the benefits of belly laughs according to these experts.
A 2016 study published in the American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine titled “The Laughter Prescription” found that laughter improves the immune system‘s ability to fight infections.
Further research indicates that spontaneous (not forced) laughter boosts the immune system by increasing the activity of natural killer cells. Participants were measured after watching a one-hour humorous video. NK cells are lymphocytes that can kill cancerous and virus-infected cells, according to the National Institutes of Health. Laughing increases heart rate and oxygen levels and improves immune system function.
People who laugh often have lower blood pressure than those who laugh less often. Strokes and heart attacks are reduced when blood pressure is lower. Indeed, a good laugh lowers blood pressure and does much more good to your health.
According to the Dr. Sears Wellness Institute, laughter can reverse the symptoms of grief or depression by increasing the pleasure-enhancing neurochemicals in the brain. Laughing also relieves anxiety and fear that may otherwise preoccupy people recovering from chronic illnesses.
The stress hormones epinephrine and cortisol decrease following laughter, according to Drs Berk and Tan. Stress and overwhelm may be reduced by laughing.
When you laugh heartily, the diaphragm is exercised, the abdominals are contracted, and even the shoulders and face muscles work. A slow walk burns more calories per hour than laughing because laughter pumps the heart.
Laughter may decrease inflammation that contributes to pain, according to research. In addition to increasing blood flow, laughing may also reduce pain, according to researchers at the University of Maryland.
A fun and easy way to improve your health is to laugh more.
