| |
Great books about the benefits of Laughter
Mangosteen? |
Laughter
If we took what we know about the medical benefits of laughter and bottled it up, it would require FDA approval.
Laughter can lower blood pressure, increase muscle
flexion, and trigger a flood of endorphins - the brain chemicals that can
bring on euphoria.
But laughter most profoundly
affects our immune systems.Gamma-interferon, a disease-fighting
protein, rises with laughter.� So do B-cells, which produce disease-destroying
antibodies, and T-cells, which orchestrate our body's immune response.
Laughter can also shut off the flow of stress hormones - the fight-or-flight compounds that come into play when we feel hostility, rage, and stress.� Stress hormones supress the immune system, raise blood pressure, and increase the number of platelets in the blood - which can cause fatal artery blockages. ������� The average child laughs
hundreds of times a day.� The average adult laughs only a dozen times.
Sources:� American Association for Therapeutic Humor; Lee Berk, MD and Stanley Tan, MD, Loma Linda University
|