We all know how infectious laughter can be, those moments when you’re with a friend and something out-of-the-ordinary happens that leaves them in fits, and no matter how much you try not to laugh, you just can’t help it. It has been said over the years that laughter is the best medicine, but how true is this? Why is it when we laugh, we get such a good feeling inside? Why do we cry with laughter at even the silliest of things? All very good questions.
There have been some extensive studies done on the effects of laughter on the human body with some very interesting results. A Researcher named Maciej Buchowski, a Ph.D. at the “Vanderbilt University Medical Centre” stated that laughing raises the energy expenditure levels and increases the heart rate. What does this mean exactly? Simple, laughter burns calories, in fact if you had a laughing session for 10-15-minutes you would burn off 10-40 calories a day, this may not sound like much, but if you think about it, that could add up to 4-pounds-a-year.
Laughing also has an amazing effect on your brain. When you laugh, endorphins are released in your brain giving you a sense of happiness. Even the muscle movement of the act of laughing helps release these endorphins, the brains way of making everything alright. The brain is a very complicated thing, we know that different parts of the brain control deferent functions, but studies show us that when we laugh the whole of the brain is effected, not just one section. Laughing, a good exercise for the grey matter.
Laughter also promotes and builds the bond between people. Results of some tests done at the “University of Oxford” show that “endorphin release induced by social laughter may be an important pathway that supports formation, reinforcement, and maintenance of social bonds between humans,” so laughter must be good for us. It also relieves stress and can relax your body for up to 45-minutes. Laughing can sometimes be exhausting, think of those painful belly laughs, but this is also a good thing as it has the same “natural High” effect that physical exercise has. This all means that a good belly laugh is as good for you as taking a long walk every day.
We all know that a good source of laughter can be your children, especially babies. They can make us laugh just by the looks on their faces sometimes, or the reaction they have to some foods when trying them for the first time, but in the clip below, you will not be able to stop laughing at the antics of this cute little chap as he has his dad in stiches rolling around the floor. You see, what’s so funny about this baby is his laugh, he sounds like a sheep when he gets going, and just has his entire family laughing along with him as dad tries to keep it together. Click on the link below to start your day off with a good belly-laugh.