Humor and Health: 3 Good Reasons to Laugh More
How often do you imagine you laugh? One study found that people aged 17 to 79 laughed an average of 18 times a day — but some laughed 89 times, and some didn't laugh at all!
Whether it's a chuckle or a chortle, here are three good reasons to laugh more!
When stressed, the body releases hormones including adrenaline and cortisol. A 2008 study found that levels of these stress hormones dropped among a group of men while they watched a funny video. Thirty minutes after the video was over, their adrenaline levels were down 35%, while cortisol was down 67%.
In fact, the researchers found that simply learning they would watch something funny decreased the men's stress hormone levels. Half the men in the experiment were told they would watch funny videos, while the other half were told they would sit in a room with magazines. The group who got to watch funny videos had 70% lower adrenaline and 39% lower cortisol before they had even watched anything funny at all.
It could help you tolerate pain
A 2011 study found that people were better able to tolerate pain after laughing — especially after laughing with a group of people.
It was found that watching about 15 minutes of comedy in a group increased people's ability to tolerate pain by an average of 10%. The researchers said this may be because laughing uses the abdominal muscles, just like exercise, causing the body to release endorphins, which are chemicals that increase our ability to ignore pain.
It may help you live longer
A 15-year study of over 50,000 people in Norway found that those who were good at understanding jokes were up to 83% less likely to die from infection. Women — but not men — who were good at understanding jokes were also 73% less likely to die from heart disease and 48% less likely to die from all causes.
