Laugh Your Way to Recovery - Alex Howard

We all know that we can feel a lot better after a good comedy, and that laughing with friends can completely change how we feel.  In fact, we've all heard the phrase "Laughter is the best medicine."  But, what does the research say about this?

 Well, a study was carried out in December 2008 that showed that laughter absolutely has a physical impact.  In fact, it directly affects our immune system.  In the study, diabetics were shown comic videos and laughed together with hospital staff on one day. On the other day, they participated in an in-patient diabetes educational programme. Blood samples were collected before and after watching comedies and again after lecture time, and changes in gene expression were comprehensively analyzed by microarray technique. 

Of the 41,000 genes analyzed, the laughter increased function of 39 genes. Fourteen of these genes were found to be related to natural killer cell activity. Low natural killer function is an important part of the immune dysfunction seen in chronic fatigie syndrome (CFS).  The conclusion is, if you want to boost your immune system, make sure you laugh more. 

Here are our top 5 ways to get more laughs in your life...

• Watch comedies - we all have different tastes, so find the kinds of comedy that make you laugh, be it stand ups, sitcoms or dark comedy, and make sure you have a good collection at home you can dip into whenever you need a good chuckle.
•  Spend time with friends that make you laugh. You are probably aware that some people just make you feel happy and playful.  Spend more time with them!
• Practice laughing. Yes, in all seriousness, practice your laugh for no reason.  You can literally fake it until you make it. The sillier you sound trying to laugh the more it will just make you laugh!
• Practice telling jokes - get some good joke books, and with friends or family you can just say to them, "I have this new joke I've heard, do you want to hear it?"  Sometimes, the more horrendous the joke, the more people will laugh because it is so bad!
• Take life less seriously generally - it's so easy to get caught in the habit of thinking we have to take things seriously, but generally speaking, the more serious we are about our problems, the more serious they become.  People will often say, one day we will look back on this and laugh - why not just laugh now...

So, remember, next time you are watching a good comedy and it makes you laugh, you are directly working on your recovery!

Copyright Alex Howard Optimum Health Clinic. Alex Howard is author of "WHY ME? My Journey from M.E. to Health and Happiness" and founder of The Optimum Health Clinic, an award winning clinic specialising in M.E./C.F.S./Fibromyalgia based in Harley Street Clinic, London, UK. The clinic has treated over 5,000 patients with M.E./Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/Fibromyalgia in over twenty-five countries around the world, and is currently running a two year clinical trial in conjunction with two top universities. A free information pack, including a 75 documentary about the clinic and its work, can be ordered from www.FreedomFromME.co.uk