Ways of Being: Life Coaching to Heal Your Life!
Marlene Shiple, Ph.D. The Life Coach Dr.: Heal Your Past + Heal Your Thoughts + Heal Your Self => Heal Your Life!

Oct

15

Laughter as Powerful Medicine for Healing

Filed Under Emotional Healing, Life Coaching, Mental Healing, Physical Healing, Spiritual Healing

Dr. Lee Berk, a preventive care specialist and psychoneuroimmunologist, of Loma Linda University, Loma Linda, CA, paired with Stanley Tan, MD, PhD an endocrinologist and diabetes specialist at Oak Crest Health Research Institute, Loma Linda, CA.  These doctors and their colleagues examined the effect of “mirthful laughter” on individuals with diabetes. Laughter -- Powerful Medicine for Healing!

Diabetes is a metabolic illness characterized by the risk of blindness, heart attack, and other blood vessel, neurological, immune-system complications. These researchers used mirthful laughter, as a preventive adjunct therapy in diabetes care.  They found that mirthful laughter raised good cholesterol and lowered inflammation.

The Study

Twenty high-risk diabetic patients with hypertension and hyperlipidemia were divided into two groups — Group C was the control group; while Group L was the laughter group.  Both groups were started on standard medications for diabetes, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia. Groups were followed for 12 months.  Both Groups received standard therapies.  In addition, Group L viewed self-selected humor for 30 minutes.

Results

The patients in the laughter group (Group L) had lower epinephrine and norepinephrine levels by the second month, suggesting lower stress levels. They had increased HDL (good) cholesterol. The laughter group also had lower levels of inflammation.  At the end of one year, the research team saw significant improvement in Group L:  HDL cholesterol had risen by 26 percent in Group L (laughter), and only 3 percent in the Group C (control). Harmful C-reactive proteins decreased 66 % in the laughter group vs. 26 percent for the control group.

Conclusion

The study suggests that the addition of an adjunct therapeutic  mirthful laughter Rx (a potential modulator of positive mood state) to standard diabetes care may lower inflammatory response and stress and increase “good” cholesterol levels.  The authors conclude that mirthful laughter may thus lower the risk of cardiovascular disease associated with diabetes mellitus and metabolic syndrome.

So, once again, Drs. Berk and Tan have given us the PERFECT reason to laugh — your Good Health depends on it!

Comments

Comments are closed.