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Welcome to a new week! What best describes your laugh? Did you know there are actually 10 types of laughter?
When someone slips on a banana peel, do you release small machine gun busts of laughter, or do you burst out with a belly laugh? Maybe you’re a giggler, or one of those silent laughers who keeps their mouth shut. Or maybe you’re at the top of the laughter tree: a snorter.
Have you ever laughed so hard that your stomach hurt? The human body can only increase in laughter so much until it starts to implode into itself – just like a black hole in space. Signs of your approach toward hilarious doom include tears, aching stomach and, ultimately, the snort. The snort is like a safety value: When a person begins to approach the critical point of laughter, a snort, or “Sus scrofa release,” as scientists refer to it, releases pressure. Everyone will snort when they reach this critical point of no return. Some never reach this critical point, and others max out their threshold very quickly.
Laughter also has been proven to reduce pain. Norman Cousins developed a recovery program incorporating laughter induced by Marx Brothers films. “I made the joyous discovery that 10 minutes of genuine belly laughter had an anesthetic effect and would give me at least two hours of pain-free sleep,” he reported.
When we laugh, our brains also release endorphins that can relieve physical pain and create a stronger immune system. A 2000 study found that people with heart disease were 40% less likely to laugh and be able to recognize humor in a variety of situations, compared to people of the same age without heart disease. Time to start watching more of those funny movies!
Something to Think About
Laughter appears to burn calories, too. A researcher from Vanderbilt University conducted a small study in which he measured the amount of calories expended in laughing. It turns out that 10 to 15 minutes of laughter burns 50 calories. But don’t be too quick to ditch your exercise routine – one piece of chocolate has about 50 calories, meaning it would take roughly 12 hours of concentrated laughter to lose a pound!
Weekly Activity
Look for ways to bring laughter into your life and the lives of those you love this week. Whether you call with a funny joke, forward a funny email or post a funny video to Facebook, see how hard you can get them laughing.
Words of Wisdom
“Laughter is an instant vacation.” – Milton Berle
“There is little success where there is little laughter.” – Andrew Carnegie
“Hearty laughter is a good way to jog internally without having to go outdoors.” – Norman Cousins
“Laughter is important, not only because it makes us happy, it also has actual health benefits. And that’s because laughter completely engages the body and releases the mind. It connects us to others, and that in itself has a healing effect.” – Marlo Thomas
“I'm happy that I have brought laughter because I have been shown by many the value of it in so many lives, in so many ways.” – Lucille Ball
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