Did you know that they say a child will laugh on an average 400 times a day? An adult averages 15 times a day. Why we don’t laugh more, is a mystery because it does make you feel so good.
There are great benefits to laughter, for the mind and the spirit. Laughing also helps us physically.
Norman Cousins said that laughter is so good for the body that it is like “Inner Jogging”
The Mayo clinic reports that laughter aids breathing by disrupting your normal respiration pattern and increasing your breathing rate. It can even help clear mucus from your lungs. (Mayo Clinic Health Letter, March 1993)
Laughter has been so effective in the recovery of illnesses that hospitals have created rooms dedicated to humor and have installed cable TV with comedy channels in patient rooms.
Laughter is good for the heart. It increases circulation and improves delivery of oxygen and nutrients to tissues throughout the body.
A good laugh helps your immune system fight off colds, flue and sinus problems by increasing the concentration of immunoglobulin A in your saliva. It may help control pain by raising the levels of certain brain chemicals.(endorphins). It is said to lower blood pressure.
Laughing is also a natural stress reliever. Doesn’t it feel good laugh so hard it brings tears to your eyes, doubled up with laughter, fall off a chair, spit out your food or wet your pants!
Apparently you cannot maintain muscle tension when you are laughing! It has been said that if you can laugh for at least 15minutes a day it can prolong your life. I guess they dont mean 15 minutes all at once but through out the day.
So the moral of the story is if you don’t laugh then you are denying your body and soul great health benefits. Laughter makes you happy, less stressful to be around, a pleasure and good for your relationship, good for your face muscles, helps you cope with problems. It can be a safety valve.
Remember: Laughter is good medicine.
SOURCE: STEVE GOODIER
