Talk about the health benefits of laughter. Why is laughter so useful, what is its peculiarity, why do we need it and how to laugh correctly, with benefit! :) (Continuation of the article: "Sense of humor or How to learn to joke").
A person begins to laugh at the age of two months, and by the age of 6 years reaches the peak of laughter. Six-year-old children laugh up to 300 times a day. As we get older, we become more serious. Adults laugh from 15 to 100 times a day.
The more we laugh, the better we feel. During laughter, the speed of air movement during exhalation increases 10 times and amounts to 100 km/h. At this time, powerful ventilation of the upper respiratory tract occurs, blood circulation improves, and large doses of endorphins enter the blood.
Therefore, 15 minutes of continuous laughter is an excellent cardio workout and can replace an hour and a half of rowing. In addition, while laughing, the abdominal muscles tense, and the same 15 minutes of continuous laughter correspond to 50 abdominal exercises. And if you laugh two minutes longer, i.e. 17 minutes, you can increase your life expectancy by 1 day.
Leo Tolstoy also said that laughter gives rise to cheerfulness, and this is true. According to the latest data, 5 minutes of laughter replace 40 minutes of rest. Therefore, if you haven’t had enough sleep, just laugh, and then you will definitely have enough strength to spend the coming day cheerfully and productively.
Smile!
Smile at absolutely everyone and don’t expect reciprocity, and you will see what miracles will begin to happen to you right now, right here.
They smiled and a chain reaction began: your mood has improved, your energy has improved, metabolic memory has begun to do its job, new cells are born, they are grateful to you, everything is restored, absolutely everything. And you create yourself, like a wizard, with the help of such a wonderful state as a smile!
Facts about the benefits of laughter.
Some interesting facts about laughter
1. Laughter not only increases life expectancy, but also improves its quality.
2. Five minutes of laughter is equivalent to a forty-minute break from work.
3. Laughter not only relaxes us. If a person laughs, about eighty muscle groups are actively working in his body.
4. Laughter helps reduce the amount of cholesterol in the blood.
5. Laughter improves the functioning of the respiratory system, heart and blood vessels, as well as the digestive system. Laugh, it helps your health!
Tools for Success: Laughter - Part I
Tools for Success: Laughter - Part II + EXERCISES!
The effect of laughter on the body
If we consider this problem more thoroughly, it turns out that the concept of laughter is not limited to just a reaction to a funny situation. According to historian Alexander Kozintsev, humor is integral to culture, and laughter in general is an innate human characteristic that arose in ancient times.
A person who knows how to laugh relaxes not only his body, but also his soul. During laughter, the amount of stress humoral factors in the blood decreases and the concentration of endorphins, otherwise called “hormones of happiness,” increases, and this has a positive effect on both the psyche and the functioning of the immune system.
Laughter and tears are phenomena that make a person healthier and more balanced. According to Darwin, laughter is a kind of release of accumulated muscle tension. Very often in everyday life we keep our emotions deep inside, which leads to the formation of many complexes. From childhood, parents push into us the habit of keeping all the negativity inside us. As a result, feelings of anger, shame or fear accumulate inside us and create constant tension. We become stone, forget about our own emotional component.
We pay less attention to the condition of our body, which leads to muscle strain. Laughter removes all this accumulated negativity, helps restore harmony of soul and body, and relieves the heavy burden of accumulated negative load.
The benefits of laughter. From a smile, as you know, a gloomy day becomes brighter, and life, in general, takes on fresh colors. The greatest benefit of laughter is its healing effect on our body.
How Watching comedies strengthens the immune system, and a timely sent “smile” causes a promotion up the career ladder? Let's talk about this.
You may remember the story of one hopelessly ill American. When the doctors gave up, he locked himself in his house alone with a hundred comedy films. I wanted one last laugh.
And, amazing fact, laughter therapy was able to completely cure it. And it was not so much a matter of an optimistic, positive attitude, but a whole group of factors.
When we laugh, we perform a kind of breathing exercise. We breathe intensely, deeply, and often use our belly.
Due to this, we are without unnecessary loads improve blood supply to all organs, reduce cholesterol, arrange ventilation, normalize blood pressure, boost your immunity and get rid of headaches.
And we add a plus sign to our mood. 
When laughing, a crazy number of muscles work. Think for yourself - what’s easier: rowing a kayak for 90 minutes, doing abs for an hour, or just laughing heartily for 15 minutes? The cardio effect is the same!
They say that 17 minutes of continuous laughter gives us an extra day of life. Besides laughter is noticeably invigorating.
Instead of drinking liters of coffee, swallowing energy drinks, dousing yourself with cold water and taking an afternoon nap, just read a couple of jokes.
Laughter stimulates certain parts of the brain. The same ones that, with proper stimulation, give the command to cure many diseases.
Stress hormones, familiar to everyone firsthand (cortisone and adrenaline), cease to be produced.
Where can they be when the body is filled to the brim with endorphin, serotonin and dopamine! These “happy” hormone users fight chronic “depression” and relieve fatigue.
It is understandable that an adult feels stupid when he cackles alone in front of the TV.
In America, this problem is dealt with simply by creating centers of collective laughter. You can come there and laugh heartily in a laughing company.
But if there is no such know-how near your home, get together more often with friends and comrades, remember funny incidents And read jokes from social networks.
By the way, this is one of the few advantages of social networks - the opportunity to make even those who are tightly buried in their own iPhone laugh. Subscribe to fun pages and scroll through the news to lift your spirits.
If you are tired at work, and before the end of the day, like before China, give yourself a laughter break.
No need to sit for half an hour staring at the monitor. It's better to chat with colleagues about a fun topic. And after five minutes of roaring laughter, the entire office will feel rested, “like coming from a resort.” 
Sometimes it’s more effective to laugh at the right time, than taking your problems home. After all, a few minutes of cackling also provide psychological relief and discharge the nervous system.
The more you smile, the fewer quarrels and conflicts there will be in your home.
Don't forget to smile, throw away the fear of facial wrinkles.
A sincere (and even not so sincere) smile can charge you with energy, improve the mood of those around you, start the process of cellular regeneration in the body, and even advance you in your career.
Even boring bosses like positive people, not whiners and grumblers!
As children, we laugh about four hundred times a day, even for no apparent reason. And in adults, a smile appears on their face twenty times less often. And it's very bad. Although laughter and fun accompany us throughout our lives, the phenomenon of laughter has been studied very poorly. Meanwhile, he deserves special treatment. Unlike a sense of humor, laughter is an innate physical ability. And if you try to laugh in the morning when you pour a portion of coffee into a cup, you can be sure that you are guaranteed a good mood for the whole day. One minute of giggling, provoked by pleasant memories, is equivalent in effectiveness to 45 minutes of meditation. ELLE decided to find out the benefits of laughter.
From a physiological point of view, laughter is simply a series of rhythmic exhalations. But few people know that this is also an excellent way to enrich the body with oxygen and an excellent “massager”, when used. In terms of cardiovascular benefits, 20 seconds of boisterous laughter is equivalent to five minutes of running on a treadmill. What's not the ideal sports training?
Laughter is not just a reflex sitting in our genes and reacting to humor, but the most important social signal. Neuroscientists say that only 10% of the time we laugh at something that can actually be at least conditionally classified as humor. In other cases, it is a ritual. Often we laugh not because we are having fun, but because we obey some rules of good (or bad) manners. At the same time, the more you laugh, the easier it is to overcome the internal barrier - and now you can no longer be stopped. Laugh for your health!
Feeling depressed? Just smile - and the bad mood will go away as if it never happened! Don't be afraid to laugh - you will be amazed at how your life and your health will change.
Health benefits of laughter
A good, kind laugh is useful not only because it lifts your spirits. People who love to laugh get sick less, are less likely to get irritated and do not know what depression is.
LAUGHTER CALMES DOWN
Laughter releases endorphins - happy hormones that help get rid of irritation and sadness. Even if you just remember for a moment how you laughed recently, your mood will improve. Research by British psychologists has shown that after watching a funny film, a person’s level of irritation decreases several times. Moreover, the subjects' mood was lifted by the mere thought that they would soon laugh - two days before the planned viewing of the comedy, they were angry half as often as usual. 
LAUGHTER IMPROVES SKIN
What other benefits of laughter? If you laugh often, you can forget about expensive cosmetic procedures to improve your skin, because laughter tones your facial muscles and improves blood circulation, resulting in a natural glow.LAUGHTER STRENGTHENS RELATIONSHIPS
The ability to laugh together is extremely important for establishing a good and kind relationship. The connection between people and their shared sense of what is funny allows them to be more open with each other. If you joke, you are not afraid to seem funny. Which means you trust.LAUGHTER INCREASES IMMUNITY
Laughter helps fight infections - this is such a benefit for humans. After a minute of sincere laughter, the body releases a large amount of antibodies into the respiratory tract, which protect against bacteria and viruses. Laughter also increases the production of white blood cells, which fight various diseases, including cancer. 
LAUGHTER HEALTHY THE HEART
Thanks to laughter, blood vessels dilate and blood circulates better. Ten minutes of laughter can significantly lower blood pressure and reduce the risk of cholesterol plaques. Laughter even helps those who have had a heart attack; doctors believe that a good mood reduces the likelihood of a second attack.LAUGHTER RELIEVES PAIN
Happiness hormones, endorphins, which are produced when a person laughs, are our body’s natural painkillers. In addition, when you laugh, you take your mind off how bad you feel and forget about the pain for at least a few minutes. Doctors have long noticed that patients who are positive and find the strength to laugh endure pain much easier than those who are sad.LAUGHTER DEVELOPES THE LUNGS
Laughter is one of the best exercises for people suffering from asthma and bronchitis. During laughter, the activity of the lungs is activated, and thus the supply of oxygen to the blood increases, which allows clearing stagnation of phlegm. Some doctors compare the effect of laughter to chest physiotherapy, which removes mucus from the airways, but for people, laughter has an even better effect on the airways. 
LAUGHTER CONQUERS STRESS
British scientists have studied the effect of laughter on people's health. Two groups of volunteers were created. One group was shown recordings of comedy concerts for an hour, while the second group was asked to simply sit quietly. After this, the experiment participants took a blood test. And it was found that those who watched the humorous concert had lower levels of the “stress” hormones cortisol, dopamine and adrenaline than the second group. The fact is that when we laugh, physical stress on all parts of the body increases. When we stop laughing, our body relaxes and calms down. This means that laughter helps us get rid of physical and emotional stress. Scientists say that a minute of sincere laughter is equivalent to forty-five minutes of deep relaxation.LAUGHTER HELPS YOU BE IN SHAPE
In fact, laughter is a type of aerobic exercise because laughing allows you to breathe in more oxygen, which stimulates your heart and blood circulation. It is even considered “internal” aerobics, since during laughter all internal organs are massaged, which allows them to work more efficiently. Laughter is also good for strengthening the abdominal, back and leg muscles. One minute of laughter is equivalent to ten minutes on a rowing machine or fifteen minutes on a bicycle. And if you laugh your heart out for one hour, you will burn up to 500 calories, the same amount you can burn by running fast for an hour. 
HAPPY PATH TO A HAPPY LIFE
Today, researchers believe that only 50% of our ability to be happy is genetic. “The Rules of a Happy Person” will help you realize your potential, teach you to enjoy life and give you the opportunity to laugh more often. And besides, laughter prolongs life!BE AN EXTROVERT
Be talkative, confident and not afraid of adventure. Where to begin? For example, from a walk in the forest in the company of old friends. Have fun, joke and feel free to express your emotions.TALK MORE
Studies have shown that people who speak their minds openly are happier than those who remain silent. This doesn't mean you have to say everything that's on your mind. Just learn to express your opinion and defend it - it will help you feel happier. 
COMMUNICATE MORE WITH FRIENDS
Friendship is the true source of happiness. If you have friends you can rely on, you won't feel lonely. Moreover, psychologists say that to be happy, women need warm relationships with other women. Contrary to popular belief, female friendships have a stronger impact on us than relationships with men.EXPECT NOTHING
Expectation of happiness is the biggest obstacle to happiness. I will be happy when I lose weight/move to a new apartment/move to a new job/find the man of my dreams. Focus on what you have and be happy right now. And beware of all the “when” and “else”: they are the ones that prevent you from being happy.TAKE LAUGHTER SERIOUSLY
Make it a very serious goal to laugh every day. Think of laughter as a vitamin that you need to take regularly. You have no time for jokes because you don’t have enough time? Here's what we can offer:- an evening on the couch watching your favorite comedies;
- a pleasant dinner with friends;
- going to the cinema or to an amusement park with children (even the sight of happy children will make you laugh with pleasure);
- talking on the phone “about nothing” with a cheerful friend;
- at least once every two weeks, trips to stores in search of new funny books and magazines to have some fun.
Laugh for your health, because... Laughter reduces stress, burns calories, strengthens the immune system, and is also an excellent pain reliever. Why do people laugh? The reason for laughter can be, for example, communication with funny people, comedy, anecdote, or tickling. Some people laugh often, while others hardly ever. However, they all rarely laugh at themselves. During communication, laughter synchronizes the minds of the speaker and the listener and brings people closer together.
Also, laughter often appears during tickling, but we cannot tickle ourselves in order to be ticklish. Tickling someone is much more pleasant, and at this moment we see a reaction - the appearance of laughter. In adults, this sometimes arouses sexual interest, and overall mood improves. Tickle response declines significantly after middle age.
Laughing is good for you
People usually laugh at a certain joke, or during a conversation. Scientists do not smear laughter with a sense of humor.
Smiling as well as laughter play an important role in choosing a partner. Men most often prefer women who laugh loudly.
Various studies show that people are more likely to laugh at social conditions, and thus reap social benefits. It is also believed that women laugh more often than men. However, laughter is considered contagious, just like yawning.
As a person ages, he laughs less often. Researchers have found that 4-year-old children laugh an average of 300 times a day, while adults laugh about 5 to 10 times.
The benefits of laughter for the body. Laughter is the best medicine for many diseases. Scientists have found that it reduces pain and discomfort associated with the disease. In addition, laughter reduces stress hormones, increases hormones of longevity and happiness, and strengthens the immune system.
Advantages
A University of Oxford study found that laughter can help build resistance to physical pain by up to 10%. Our grandmothers also knew about the health benefits of laughter. From time immemorial it was believed that it prolongs life, improves health and is the best cure for all diseases.
If a person laughs heartily, that's good. If you laugh, then the pressure in the body increases, breathing intensifies, the pulse quickens, more oxygen enters the cells, and calories are burned.
A scientist from Vanderbilt University conducted a small experiment in which the number of calories burned while laughing was measured. It has been proven that if a person laughs for 10 to 15 minutes, the body burns about 50 calories.
Other Maryland researchers have studied the blood vessel response (). They watched people watching dramas and comedies. After this, it was concluded that people who watched the comedy had normal blood vessels and improved blood circulation. However, the blood vessels of those watching the drama were tense.
Therefore, watching comedy benefits your cardiovascular system and overall health. Because you laugh while watching them, and laughter has been said to strengthen the immune system, lower stress hormones, lower blood sugar, and burn calories.
Laughter reduces the risk of heart disease: happy, cheerful people have a 40% reduced risk of developing cardiovascular disease, unlike pessimists. This is due to the hormone cortisol (stress hormone), which suppresses the immune system. Laughter can reduce cortisol levels in the body by up to 50%.
When you laugh, your body produces endorphins, hormones that help fight stress and also serve as a natural pain reliever. This helps make a person a little happier.
Smile and laugh daily
Smiling every day will help you in everything. Laughter every day helps maintain a good mood. It was also noted that this improves health and resistance to infections.
You can laugh, for example, at home while watching comedies, or better yet, when communicating with people.
It especially helps during depression, anger, because... Frees the body from negative emotions and gives peace of mind.
Research conducted at the Center for Alternative Medicine at the University of California showed that laughter reduces anger levels by up to 98% (watching comedies), and reduces depression by up to 51%.
Skin Health: Laughter has been shown to improve skin health (). This is due to the dilation of blood vessels, improved blood circulation and cellular nutrition. The skin becomes more radiant and smooth.
Plus, laughter helps keep your heart healthy. To lower blood pressure, you can laugh for 10 minutes. This will help improve blood circulation, prevent cardiovascular diseases, and also provide enough oxygen to the heart muscle.
Also, laughter is good not only for the heart, but also for the lungs. If you have problems with the respiratory system, it is useful to laugh for 30 minutes a day. This will help cleanse the lungs, blood, and reduce pain symptoms.
Benefits of laughter:
- reduces blood pressure;
- reduces stress hormones;
- stimulates the immune system;
- relieves pain;
- relaxes muscles;
- stimulates the production of endorphins;
- improves the health of the respiratory system.
When you laugh, your body relaxes and pain decreases. Laughter also helps the body secrete neurotransmitters such as serotonin, dopamine (helps to relax). It can be called an excellent antidepressant.
In addition to all of the above, it helps fight infections, especially of the respiratory tract. It is believed that laughing for 30 seconds to 5 minutes (10 times a day) reduces appetite, burns calories, which helps you lose weight.