To date, various healing properties of laughter have been confirmed by studies that have shown that laughter increases the amount of oxygen consumed by the body, enhances the work of the heart, lungs and muscles. It also helps to stimulate blood circulation and at the same time relaxes muscles. Even 10 minutes of laughter can lower blood pressure and reduce the risk of cholesterol plaques. In addition, laughter stimulates the brain to produce more endorphins, neurotransmitters that not only make you happier, but also reduce the feeling of pain. Laughter strengthens your immune system, improves your mood, reduces pain and protects you from the devastating effects of stress. Nothing works faster and more reliably to bring your mind and body back into balance than cheerful laughter. Humor gives hope, brings people together and helps to get rid of anger faster. Laughter can even prolong life. A study conducted in Norway showed that people with a strong sense of humor experience those who do not laugh so much. This difference was especially noticeable for those who fought cancer. In the article “Laughter by Recipe” by William B. Strean notes: “Let’s start thinking that along with eating vegetables and getting enough sleep, laughter is a reasonable recipe as a great way to improve your health.” Let’s take a closer look at the relationship between laughter and the lymphatic and immune systems. The lymphatic system is a highly effective cleansing conglomerate, which is the basis of the immune system. What does laughter have to do with the lymphatic system? The answer is very simple. When you laugh, the diaphragm becomes a powerful pump for your lymphatic circulation, just as your heart serves as a central pump that promotes blood through the vessels. This helps lymphatic vessels carry this fluid through your body and helps lymph nodes clean and filter this liquid, removing waste, dead cells and unwanted microorganisms. Increased lymphatic flow = increased, improved immune system only due to the simple nature of more lymph passing through the nodes, thus producing more lymphocytes, antibodies, etc. By involving the diaphragm in any type of deep breathing (including laughter), the parasympathetic nervous system is immediately activated. The parasympathetic nervous system signals a slowdown to all the body’s systems, thus producing “well-being” hormones (endorphins), which signal stress hormones to cool it. Once this signal is received, blood pressure drops, the heartbeat slows down, and the general radiance of “happiness at the moment” replaces anxiety/stress – the perfect “domino effect”. For example, it was found that watching a one-hour comedy video gives:

Increased number and activation of T-cells.

Increased number of helper T-cells (cells attacked by the AIDS virus).

Increased ratio of helper / suppressor T-cells.

Increased number and activity of natural killer (NK) cells.

Increased level of gamma interferon.

Increased number of b-cells.

Here are some quotes from famous doctors:

“The simple truth is that happy people don’t usually get sick.” – Bernie Siegel, MD (a globally recognized expert in cancer treatment and complementary holistic medicine).

“The best clinicians understand that there is an internal physiological intervention caused by positive emotions, such as cheerful laughter, optimism and Hope.” – Lee Burke, MD, Associate Professor at Loma Linda Medical School

“For the most part, when you go for treatment, the doctor won’t necessarily tell you to take two aspirin pills and watch a comedy, but the impact of laughter is as real as taking a drug.” – Lee Burke. “Believe it or not, but truly sincere laughter can also help. This is because laughter makes the diaphragm move, and it plays a vital role in the movement of blood throughout the body.” – Dr. Andrea Nelson, University of Leeds School of Medicine.

With such a huge power of healing and renewal, the ability to laugh easily and often is a huge resource for overcoming problems, improving your relationships and maintaining both physical and emotional health. Best of all, it’s a priceless medicine – fun, free and easy to use. As a child, we laughed hundreds of times a day, but now that we have become adults, life has become more serious and laughter is more rare. 6 ways to increase the amount of laughter in your life:1. Spend time with children; they like to laugh, a lot, and laughter is contagious.2. Surround yourself with positive, carefree people (because, again, heart laughter is contagious!).3. Read anecdotes and comics.4. Watch a new comedy in the movies or on TV (even better if you watch it with friends who also like to laugh).5. Don’t be afraid to laugh at yourself! 6. Join the laughter club (yes, they do exist). What if you really can’t “find something funny”? Believe it or not, you can laugh without experiencing a funny event, and the imitation of laughter can be as useful as the real thing. It can even make the exercises more exciting and productive. A study by the University of Georgia showed that the inclusion of simulated laughter attacks in the exercise program helps to improve the mental health of the elderly, as well as their aerobic endurance. In addition, hearing others laugh, even for no apparent reason, you can often cause genuine laughter. To add an imitation of laughter to your own life, look for groups of Laughter Yoga or laughter therapy. Or you can start just laughing at other people’s jokes, even if they don’t seem funny to you. Both you and the other person will feel good, it will bring you closer together, and who knows, maybe it will even lead to some spontaneous laughter.