A laugh a day keeps the heart attack away. Who would have known that all you had to do to stay healthy was laugh? I may have heard the line ‘laughter is the best medicine’ before but I never took it seriously. Wait- that’s not entirely true because when I heard the line, I laughed. The Reason I laughed was because when I was younger, I was warned against laughing too much lest I fell sick. The thought of it actually turning out to be a remedy is what amused me. Laughing is something you can do sitting down, it costs no money and requires no special exercise equipment or skill; the perfect work out for people such as myself who do not fancy fitness programs. Just laugh! Laughter improves your job performance particularly if your job depends on inventiveness and solving intricate situations. Its role in relationships has been vastly underestimated. I really am not a picky person when it comes to these things but a man has got to be funny to move me! Believe it or not but laughter has been the glue of good marriages. I suppose you wonder what that has to do with health. A happy marriage is a healthy marriage. Any kind of stress or emotional depression is not healthy –for anyone. But when laughter still fills the house, you know it’s still good. Okay, real health wise, new found evidence suggests that laughter helps your blood vessels function better. It acts on the inner lining of blood vessels called the endothelium causing vessels to relax and expand, increasing blood flow. In simple terms, laughter is good for your heart and brain, two organs that require the steady flow of oxygen carried in the blood. Director of the Centre for Preventive Cardiology at the University of Maryland Medical Centre and a professor of medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, Michael Miller was quoted, “When it comes to protecting your heart, laughter is the best medicine. 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.” Miller also said that the most significant study finding was that “people with heart disease responded less humorously to everyday life situations.” They generally laughed less, even in positive situations, and they displayed more anger and hostility. So there you have it. Just laugh! Personally, I love laughing. I laugh all the time. I will see a fly and laugh. I like socializing with people who make me laugh. Lack of a good sense of humour or even lack of actual humour in general is something terrible. Life is serious but that doesn’t mean we have to take it seriously all the time. We need to take it easy once in a while and learn to laugh –not just for health’s sake, but for the fun of it too. Crack a joke, however bad it is at least people will know you are trying. Listen to other people’s jokes and make an effort. It’s better than just sitting there frowning all the time wondering why everyone is so jolly when you have just spilled your tea! Lighten up already! rachelgaruka@yahoo.co.uk
