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REAL LIFE NEWS: A LAUGH A DAY KEEPS THE DOCTOR AWAY

by Hazed

The cliche is that "laughter is the best medicine". It turns out that may be right! No, laughing at a virus won't make it go away, nor will a good giggle mend a broken leg, but it can help you deal with pain.

Laughter releases chemicals that act as a natural painkiller, researchers have said.

They tested the pain thresholds of volunteers, then split them into two groups, showing one group 15 minutes of comedy videos, and the other group something boring - such as programmes about golfing.

Then they tested their pain thresholds again and this time they found that the ones who'd had a good belly laugh were able to withstand up to 10% more pain than they had done before watching the comedy videos.

The other group, who'd been subjected to boredom, were less able to put up with pain than before, much to the scientists' surprise.

To have an effect, the laughter needs to be a good guffaw: giggling or tittering doesn't do the job. It's the uncontrollable laughter which empties the lungs that released endorphins into the body, and generates mild euphoria, thus dulling the pain. Slapstick humor seemed to work much better than more cerebral comedy.

The scientists were not actually trying to develop a new treatment, but are interested in laughter itself: why did it develop in humans? They theorise that as well as dulling pain, laughter promotes social bonds and so would have been an important part of early humans grouping together into larger tribes.

Whatever their motive in carrying out this experiment, the results are fascinating. Next time I have a headache, instead of reaching for the painkillers, I might just stick on a comedy DVD.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-14889165

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