Laugh Your Way To A Healthier You!

It is true that laughter is the best medicine. Think about it-you have had a horrible day and your cranky and starting to feel down. It seems that things are going to only get worse and you just can't shake your mood. Then you see something funny, read a funny book or watch your favorite comedy and you feel lightened, the dark clouds seem to fade and things just don't seem as bad as they did before your mood was lifted with laughter. I love to laugh. I laugh at myself (I'm pretty clumsy and have learned that I HAVE to laugh at myself otherwise I'd be pretty pathetic and embarrassed all the time), I only have friends that I can laugh with and I love to hear my children laughing. Isn't it fun to just listen to others laughing-sometimes I start laughing and don't even know why. The great thing is that as far as your health goes-laughter can actually reduce your stress levels and boost your immune system. Did you know that there is even an emerging therapeutic field called laugh therapy?

Laugh, Laugh And Laugh A Little More-Here Are The Benefits

**Hormones- Laughter reduces the level of stress hormones like cortisol, epinephrine, dopamine and growth hormone.

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**Laughing relaxes the body and reduces problems associated with high blood pressure, strokes, arthritis, and ulcers

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**Increases stamina through increased oxygen supply .

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**Effective antidote for depression, anxiety and psychosomatic disorders: laughter boosts the production of serotonin, a natural anti-depressant.

**Laughter can help you burn calories-There is even a new exercise movement called Laughtercising .

**Medical experts in the USA found laughter helped children relax, which had a major impact on how they dealt with and accepted pain. They believe the healing power of humour can reduce pain and stimulate immune function in children with cancer, Aids or diabetes and in children receiving organ transplants and bone marrow treatments. More here.

** Laughter also helps breast milk to fight skin allergies. Breastfed babies with eczema experienced milder symptoms if their mothers laughed hours before feeding them, according to a study by Hajime Kimata at the Moriguchi-Keijinkai Hospital in Osaka, Japan. More here.

I've always known how laughing makes me feel but was surprised to find so many health benefits. Each night/day that I do my blogging I always make sure to visit a few blogs that make me smile. It is a fun distraction to doing research for my site and really keeps me going . One of my favorite sites is Sogeshirts presents by Tim. You know how some people just have a knack for being funny and they can say the most mundane thing in the world and have you laughing in stitches on the floor? That is what Tim at Sogeshirts does. He just has a way of turning just about anything funny. He updates his blog on a regular basis and is my daily dose of laughter. I don't know how he does it but if you want to reap some of the benefits of laughter check out http://sogeshirts.blogspot.com/ . He also has some really funny t-shirts that are unique and hysterical.

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Go Enjoy A Laugh And Feel Better,

Heidi