Betty Finney's Oomph • Motivation Programs for Stress Relief • The Evidence for Laughter

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There is an old saying "laughter is the best medicine". And we are now beginning to understand why this is true. It might be difficult to adequately quantify how effects of a positive attitude change may effect a person's health, but more and more researchers are finding evidence to support such claims. One area that has received notable attention is the area known as Gelotology, the scientific study of the psychological, physiological and neurological effects of laughter. First to suggest the benefits of a daily injection of laughter was Norman Cousins, who studied its effects while serving as Adjunct Professor of Medical Humanities for the School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles. Having been diagnosed with heart disease, he began a regimen of heavy doses of Vitamin C, and training himself how to laugh. In his later years he also developed a form of arthritis, causing him pain, which he treated, once again, with heavy doses of laughter. He claimed that a mere 20 minutes of laughter would leave him pain-free for two hours without using any additional pain treatment. He eventually died in 1990 at the age of 75, a full 36 years after his doctors had originally diagnosed him with heart disease.

In 1980 the departing editor of the New England Journal of Medicine Dr. Franz Ingelfinger made a statement that by his estimates 85% of all human illnesses are curable by the body's own healing system. Research shows applying a positive attitude in one's life is pivotal in allowing the body to be able to perform these natural healing functions, and laughter is a big ingredient in that change.

Another pioneer in the study of laughter as a healing force is Paul E. McGhee Ph.D. McGhee received his Ph.D. in developmental psychology in 1968 and for two decades has researched the subject publishing over 50 scientific articles and writing 13 books on humor. In McGhee's book Health, Healing and the Amuse System: Humor as Survival Training he notes the many benefits of humor on health, including muscle relaxation, reduction of hormones that cause stress, enhancement to the immune system and pain reduction. McGhee states "Humor and laughter support the destruction of damaging free radicals ---long known to have detrimental effect on many different aspects of health" In regards to stress hormones, a daily regimen of laughter can reduce hormones produced by the "fight or flight" response caused by stressful events in our daily lives. Those hormones are designed to assist us in a physical response to 'fight or flight" yet a true threat does not exist so those hormones are not used and therefore remain in the body during the course of the day. The element of laughter has been show in studies to reduce 4 different types of stress hormones. Another major benefit is immune system enhancement. Only recently have researchers been able to recognize the measurable effects of laughter on the immune system, and claim that people with a better sense of humor tend to have stronger immune systems. In part this is due to the increased immunoglobulins produced by the body after periods of humor-related activity and also an increased measure of naturally produced killer T-cells, the cells in our body that fight viruses and other foreign organisms. McGhee also goes on to point out the increased ability to reduce pain after periods of laughter, citing studies done by Norman Cousins among others. He identifies muscle relaxation and mental diversion as both elements in explaining why this work for patients with chronic pain. "Humor creates internal conditions which support the body's own basic healing and health-maintaining mechanisms. It help assure that these mechanisms are working for you, not against you." - Paul McGhee Ph.D..

Researchers in Positive Psychology have argued that "emotional flexibility" is important in boosting emotional resilience. An emotionally flexible person is able to manage their mood or emotional state to more effectively meet the demands of the current difficult situation, and humor-- as we have seen -- is a potent mood management tool.

In an article released by the University of Maryland Medical Center, Dr Michael Miller M.D., F.A.C.C., director of the Center of Preventive Cardiology says "We don't know yet why laughing protects the heart, but we know that mental stress is associated with impairment of the endothelium, the protective barrier lining our blood vessels. This can cause a series of inflammatory reactions that lead to fat and cholesterol build-up in the coronary arteries and ultimately to a heart attack,"

A study done at the Center for Neuroimmunology, School of Medicine, School of Public Health, Loma Linda University, California which comprised of test subjects being shown a one-hour humor video showed an increase in natural killer cells, T-Cells and immunoglobulins in blood samples taken after the video as compared to ones taken before the video. Their conclusion that humor related activities could indeed be beneficial to subjects overall wellness and complement other therapies.

George Vaillant, M.D. a noted American psychiatrist and Professor at Harvard Medical School, has for over 30 years studied recovery processes of individuals with addictions and personality disorders. More recently has taken interest in the subjects of aging and human happiness. In his book Adaption of Life he reported a direct link between humor and coping strategies for people under stress.

Gail Sheehy, a writer and lecturer who's book Passages has been described as a "road map of adult life" observed that a sense of humor is a very effective tool in coping with stress. A key element in her book as well as Vaillant's research shows that while it's easy to engage in humor on days that are stress-free the true key to the effectiveness of humor lies in one's ability to deploy humor as a coping mechanism on days when stress is at its highest levels.

Three separate Japanese studies have shown that listening to a traditional comic story told by a professional story teller reduced the levels of inflammatory agents in Rheumatoid arthritis patients. This effect was especially pronounced in patients whose RA symptoms were described as being particularly difficult to manage. Growth hormone, which has been associated with joint swelling and pain in RA patients was shown to have also been reduced when exposed to this traditional comic storytelling to the point where levels appeared similar to healthy subjects.