LAUGHTER... WHY IT IS SO GOOD FOR YOU

For hundreds of years, we've known that "Laughter is the best
medicine".

Laughter makes you feel good for a reason. The physiological
effects on your body are amazing. For example:

· Laughter reduces levels of certain stress hormones. It
provides a safety valve that shuts off the flow of stress
hormones and the fight-or-flight compounds that come into
action in times of trouble, or hostility or rage.

· Laughter boosts the immune system because when you're in a
state of mirth, natural killer cells that destroy tumors
and viruses increase. It basically brings balance to all
the components of the immune system.

· Laughter can be a total body workout! Do you often feel
exhausted after a bout of contagious giggling? This is
because you have just had an aerobic workout.

· Blood pressure is lowered and there is an increase in
vascular blood flow, and an increase in oxygenation of
the blood. Oxygenation of the blood enables the body to
carry on healing activities for itself.

· There also has been some belief that laughter prevents some
life-threatening diseases such as heart disease. That's
because anger and fear (two emotions that often lead to
heart attack) are completely eliminated while you are
laughing.




Laughing invokes happiness and joy.



Instead of being gloomy and frustrated because there is no
perceived solution, laughing lifts you up out of your pool
of problems and places you on solid ground where you can gain
some new insights. Under conditions of happiness it is much
easier to think creatively around a problem than when your mind
is filled with thoughts of helplessness or worthlessness.



Shared laughter promotes bonding and unity within a group. This
is particularly evident when there are a few people involved in a
project. People feel more welcome and free to offer suggestions
and think out loud. They're not afraid of being put down, so
will risk sharing their opinion.


Laughter also opens the door
to more real and risky communication. Sometimes people are
feeling scared or overwhelmed by conditions, but don't know how
to express it. If a humorous comment is made that expresses the
concerns in an exaggerated way, people will laugh. This then
enables them to talk about the uncomfortable issues or concerns.



By laughing, an entry is made for talk about the subject. This
applies just as well in a family setting.