LAUGHTER
Laughter is a pleasant physical reaction and emotion consisting usually of rhythmical, often audible contractions of the diaphragm and other parts of the respiratory system. It is a response to certain external or internal stimuli. Laughter can rise from such activities as being tickled, or from humorous stories or thoughts.
Most commonly, it is considered an auditory expression of a number of positive emotional states, such as joy, mirth, happiness, or relief. On some occasions, however, it may be caused by contrary emotional states such as embarrassment, surprise, or confusion such as nervous laughter or courtesy laugh. Age, gender, education, language, and culture are all indicators as to whether a person will experience laughter in a given situation. Some other species of primate (chimpanzees, gorillas and orangutans) show laughter-like vocalizations in response to physical contact such as wrestling, play chasing or tickling.
Laughter is a part of human behavior regulated by the brain, helping humans clarify their intentions in social interaction and providing an emotional context to conversations. Laughter is used as a signal for being part of a group, it signals acceptance and positive interactions with others. Laughter is sometimes seen as contagious, and the laughter of one person can itself provoke laughter from others as a positive feedback.
THE BENEFITS OF LAUGHTER
It’s true: laughter is strong medicine. It draws people together in ways that trigger healthy physical and emotional changes in the body. Laughter strengthens your immune system, boosts mood, diminishes pain, and protects you from the damaging effects of stress. Nothing works faster or more dependably to bring your mind and body back into balance than a good laugh. Humor lightens your burdens, inspires hope, connects you to others, and keeps you grounded, focused, and alert. It also helps you release anger and forgive sooner.
With so much power to heal and renew, the ability to laugh easily and frequently is a tremendous resource for surmounting problems, enhancing your relationships, and supporting both physical and emotional health. Best of all, this priceless medicine is fun, free, and easy to use.
As children, we used to laugh hundreds of times a day, but as adults, life tends to be more serious and laughter more infrequent. But by seeking out more opportunities for humor and laughter, you can improve your emotional health, strengthen your relationships, find greater happiness and even add years to your life.
Laughter is good for your health
Laughter relaxes the whole body. A good, hearty laugh relieves physical tension and stress, leaving your muscles relaxed for up to 45 minutes after.
Laughter boosts the immune system. Laughter decreases stress hormones and increases immune cells and infection-fighting antibodies, thus improving your resistance to disease.
Laughter triggers the release of endorphins, the body’s natural feel-good chemicals. Endorphins promote an overall sense of well-being and can even temporarily relieve pain.
Laughter protects the heart. Laughter improves the function of blood vessels and increases blood flow, which can help protect you against a heart attack and other cardiovascular problems.
Laughter burns calories. Okay, so it’s no replacement for going to the gym, but one study found that laughing for 10 to 15 minutes a day can burn approximately 40 calories which could be enough to lose three or four pounds over the course of a year.
Laughter lightens anger’s heavy load. Nothing diffuses anger and conflict faster than a shared laugh. Looking at the funny side can put problems into perspective and enable you to move on from confrontations without holding onto bitterness or resentment.
Laughter may even help you to live longer. A study in Norway found that people with a strong sense of humor outlived those who don’t laugh as much. The difference was particularly notable for those battling cancer.
EXCESSIVE LAUGHTER COULD KILL YOU
Laughter is good for your psychological well-being and cardiovascular health, but (don't laugh) it could also kill you, report researchers in the British Medical Journal's special Christmas issue.
For most people, it's probably safe to chuckle.
The paper's authors, two pharmacologists with a shared interest in humor, reviewed about 5,000 studies. They found that intense laughter can trigger fainting, asthma attacks, "protrusion of abdominal hernias," headaches, incontinence, jaw dislocation, and arrhythmia.
It's also a rare cause of Boerhaave's syndrome, a spontaneous hole in the esophagus that's more commonly the result of vomiting.
"We don't know how much laughter is safe," study author Robin E. Ferner of The University of Birmingham told The New York Times. "There's probably a U-shaped curve: laughter is good for you, but enormous amounts are bad, perhaps." James Hamblin, a physician who covers health for The Atlantic, wrote a 2011 essay for Splitsider all about laughter and death. He noted that laughing very hard can also rupture an aneurysm or be a symptom of something dire, like a seizure or a stroke.
Still, while the harms of laughter are real, there's no need to worry if thinking about them induces a chuckle. "The benefit-harm balance," the BMJ authors conclude, "is probably favourable."
RISKS OF LAUGHING
• Protrusion of abdominal hernias — side-splitting laughter or laughing fit to burst.
• A quick intake of breath during laughing can cause foreign bodies to be inhaled.
• Trigger for asthma attacks.
• Incontinence.
• Headaches.
The researchers also listed pathological causes of laughter, most commonly epilepsy (gelastic seizures.)
They said their search was limited to laughter without exploring related behaviour such as chuckles or grins.
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