How Laughing Is Good For Your Health

When thinking about alternative medicine, most people picture plants, crystals, needles, maybe some bugs and leeches, but few realize that jokes, humor and comedy are truly medicines, in their own right. It has long been established that optimists live longer than pessimists, but now there is some hard evidence that people with a better sense of humor also have longer and healthier lives. Your "stay healthy" plan should include a joke and a 20-minute comedy show, to go with the broccoli and carrots.

There are now various associations and physicians specialized in the so-called therapeutic humor, who are still investigating the roles of laughter in our lives. Perhaps the most obvious of these roles is that related to the social life - jokes often allow people to connect and to bond, and sharing a good laughter is a good method to integrate in a team, to get along with the coworkers, neighbors and so on. This function is vital from the point of view of mental health, since it reduces loneliness and, with it, depression and other problems associated with it. You don't have to be trained in stand-up comedy in order to say something funny, sometimes all you need is a change of perspective or the courage to make fun at your own expense.

Humor is an invaluable asset in crisis situations, when it helps us calm down and reduce the levels of stress (and all the negative effects stress has on health). It is often considered that, among patients with very severe diseases, those with an upbeat approach, who are capable of making jokes about their situations, have the best chances to defeat the illness. So far, there have been no scientific studies to prove this, but the patients themselves report feeling better after joining an activity with humorous potential, even if it's just watching a comedy show together with some friends or with other patients.

Recent researches suggest that laughter influences more than our mental framework, it actually has a positive effect on the physical aspect as well. It has been widely accepted, for some time, that laughter increases the pain resistance level, but the theory is still not proven. In fact, very few studies have yet been made about the relation between comedy and health, but those existing seem to indicate that a good joke may lower the blood pressure, improve memory and cognitive functions and boost the immune system. Moreover, these results are not short-term only: it seems that a good sense of humor may protect you against heart diseases and alter your biochemical state to a level where the organism produces more antibodies. The lack of research in the field is due to the fact that people have always assumed that laughter is good for your health (along with an apple a day and a breath of fresh air), but little has been done to analyze this in depth.

There is also a "bad" humor (same as there is good cholesterol and bad cholesterol). This category includes the approach that makes people feel miserable about themselves, or angry, upset and vengeful, as well as the skeptic and cynic attitude, which is often the front for deep depression and indifference. Jokes directed at other people are also "bad" humor, along with ethnic, racial and sexist jokes, which are born out of frustration, not out of optimism and cheerfulness. Also, people who often make fun of themselves hide a low self esteem, which is only worsened with every funny joke they invent (there is a good reason why clowns and successful comedy actors are often perceived as sad and depressed in their real lives).

If you decide to use laughter as a therapeutic method, the first obvious issue is that there are no harmful side effects, and you've got nothing to lose. The second issue is that you can actually improve your sense of humor in time, same as any other skill or ability, by constant training and exposure to jokes and comedy. Next time you go to the movies, buy a ticket for a comedy, no matter how dumb the poster looks. When you read the paper, don't forget to check out their daily cartoon too. Spend ten minutes every day reading jokes, and, when you find some you like, share them with your friends. (And when your boss catches you reading jokes instead of working, tell him it's just therapy, he can't stop your from taking your medication at work, right?) Last but not least, try to find the funny side of the small things that happen every day around you - there is always something absurd or plain stupid going on right near you, which may provide five minutes of good laugher, which, in turn, may unblock some arteries and keep the heart attack far away.

John Ryan is the creator of award winning poker software

and in his spare time, he likes to rewrite classic jokes at http://www.jokes-comedy.com

---

Tips for Staying Young Eternally

What is something that goes up but never comes down?... Read More

Low Back Pain

About 85 percent of the population will experience disabling low... Read More

Homeopathy ? Five Things to Know before You ?Go There?

With natural health care so popular, an area that has... Read More

How To Improve Your Mood And Health With Deep Breathing Exercises

It is relatively well known now that exercise releases endorphins... Read More

Why is Prevention So Important?

One of the least known and least practiced aspects of... Read More

A Stitch In Time Saves Nine - Prevention not Cure

It is a sad fact that most people pay little... Read More

What Is Oral Chelation And How Can It Help Prevent Heart Disease

Oral ChelationOral chelation is the solubilization of a metal salt... Read More

Aromatherapy Favorites - Beautiful Rose Oil

Ah, Wonderful Rose OilIf there's an aroma that more individuals... Read More

Mental Health Maintenance Is Made Simple

Your mental health is often drastically improved when you use... Read More

Bladder Infections

"If you let that fiery wise blood just sit there... Read More

Too Clean?A Critical Look At The Alleged Link Between Asthma and Cleanliness

Americans are ridiculed around the world for our attention to... Read More

Cure Arthritis? Right!

Arthritis sufferers are daily bombarded with new, better, more exciting... Read More

Going Back to the Basics: Revival of Traditional Treatment through Herbs

Herbal medicine has its origins in ancient cultures including those... Read More

An Udderly Ricidulous Home Remedy

Home Remedies - Facts or Quacks?That's what I recently asked... Read More

Eating Healthy Myths Destroyed

All Refined Carbohydrates are Hazardous to Your Health. The average... Read More

Sick Building Syndrome and Indoor Climate Control

The problem of high levels of CO2 in ambient air... Read More

Wild Medicine and Tansy Cakes

It started with the Tansy cakes. I had to ask... Read More

Full Spectrum Daylight Bulbs ? Simply Light Years Ahead!

Sunlight is a vital nutrient, which regulates the activity of... Read More

All Natural Shampoo - 5 Tips

All Natural Shampoo - 5 Tips Here are 5 tips... Read More

Homemade Bath Products...the Pros and Cons

When you surf the Internet to find proper bath products... Read More

Feuille D Menthe: The Cooling and Uplifting Fragrance of Green Grass

Feuille D'Menthe is a blend of several fragrant grass essential... Read More

Genital Warts Natural and Alternative Treatment Remedies

Have you been diagnosed with genital warts caused by the... Read More

Hypnotherapy and How it Can Help

Hypnotherapy is the process of using hypnosis to unlock the... Read More

Three Tips for Arthritis Pain Relief

Massage ?not the areas that hurtSome experts think that arthritic... Read More

The Benefits of Drinking Mangosteen (XanGo)

Benefits of Drinking XanGo:The Mangosteen fruit (XanGo's main ingredient) is... Read More

A Natural Body Detox Can Dramatically Improve Your Health

Detoxification therapy is a completely natural and necessary process to... Read More

What is Hypnosis?

Before anyone experiences hypnosis and starts using it to make... Read More

With A Little Help From Our Friends

The quality of one's life to a large extent is... Read More

New Hope for Chronic Fatigue and Fibromyalgia Sufferers

There are numerous theories with regard to the causes of... Read More

Portrait of a Psychic / Intuitive

Many people ask me how I started doing this work.As... Read More

How To Cure Your Incurable Nasal Allergy

Immunoglobulin E is an antibody, which is secreted from the... Read More

Why Your Search for Pain Relief Needs a Strategy

If you're like most of us who have known chronic... Read More

Arthritis and Aromatherapy

Arthritis is an inflammation of the joints and is characterized... Read More