subject: Laughter Really Is The Best Medicine [print this page] It's true that we usually feel much better after we've had a good laugh. And it's not just because the laughter put us into a good mood. There seems to be evidence that laughing actually improves your physical condition even as it improves your mood. And this means that the old proverb about laughter being the "best medicine" is probably more than just a folk saying.
One of the mechanisms that produces these good physical effects appears to be a strengthening of a person's immune system when they laugh. One study done in 2001 learned that the killer cells in the immune system, that is, cells that hunt down infections and remove them from the body, increased in number after bouts of laughter[1]. Another study, two years later, concluded that laughter produced both an increase in killer cells and a decrease in stress[2].
But even before medical science was getting around to investigating the bodily mechanisms for laughter's effects on health, others were using the phenomenon to improve their lives. One organization that has done this is the Laughter Yoga movement of Doctor Madan Katuria and his wife Madhuri Katuria. They recognized the beneficial effects of laughter, and combined it with yoga practices such as deep breathing and stretching. Yoga poses and breathing exercises are interspersed among the sessions of laughter, to help increase the physical impact.
Laughter Yoga and other types of exercise that incorporate laughter as a vital element are now practised in clubs, schools, seniors' centres, businesses, and even prisons. After all, there are no real cultural barriers when it comes to laughter. So it can break down barriers between people in ways that nothing else can.
You don't need to join a formal yoga club to benefit from laughter. Just having a good, hearty guffaw on a regular basis can do a lot to ease your stress and relax you. And now we know, from medical studies, that it can even build up your immune system.
