Laughter can be the best medicine

The price is right and it’s free! It’s a big laugh.

Researchers at Stanford Universitysay that laughter can be strong medicine. The physical act itself increases blood flow and contracts abdominal muscles.

The most significant evidence of laughter’s power comes from a study of heart attack patients. Half of the study group watched comedy shows for 30 minutes every day. The other half didn’t. After a year, the laughers had one-fifth the number of repeat heart attacks that the control group had.

Doctors at the University of CA, Irvine, say watching a humorous video decreased levels of two key stress hormones that can cause irregular heart rhythms. Heart disease patients are often given beta-blocking drugs that specifically block these hormones. The doctors say laughter does the sane thing and is a lot more fun.

In other studies, laughter has been shown to help children and adults handle painful medical procedures.

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