Laugh for Better Health

The medical reasons mirth is good for you

There are many ways laughter may well be the best medicine. While it can’t cure diseases, scientists say it has measurable health benefits: it’s good for your heart, brain, relationships and your overall sense of wellbeing.

Laughing triggers the brain to release feel-good neurotransmitters. Dopamine helps the brain process emotional responses and enhances our experience of pleasure; serotonin buoys our mood; and endorphins regulate pain and stress, and induce euphoria. A recent study even showed that laughing with others releases endorphins via opioid receptors, which suggests that laughter-produced euphoria is like a narcotic – but without the obvious drawbacks.

Beyond a mood lift, laughing often may also help prevent a heart event. Common daily challenges can cause chronic stress. The continual fight-or-flight response causes our blood vessels to constrict and our blood pressure to rise. That can lead to an increased risk of heart attack and stroke. But like aerobic exercise, a good laugh can actually counteract stress.

Laughter is also an antidote to pain, and therefore increases our endurance. A 2011 Oxford University study showed that subjects’ pain thresholds were significantly higher after laughing, due to that endorphin-mediated opiate effect. A good belly laugh also happens to be a bit of a workout on its own – it exercises several muscle groups, including your abdomen, back, shoulders, diaphragm and face.

Joking around is also a boon to our social life. Shared giggles act to reinforce and maintain our sense of togetherness. And people who feel more connected to others have higher self-esteem.