Laughter has been called "the best medicine" for many decades — and now there’s scientific proof. A study from the Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre in Brazil has shown that regular chuckling ...

Laughter has an infectious quality. One individual begins to laugh, and soon the whole room is in hysterics. Yet, beyond its capacity to ease tension or uplift spirits, laughter is growing in ...

University of Jaén investigators report significant reductions in anxiety and increased life satisfaction in adults through laughter therapy across 33 clinical trials. Anxiety management and life ...

This study assessed the impact of laughter therapy in both patients with cancer and caregivers, and both groups showed decreases in mood disturbances, in addition to decreases in pain for patients and ...

So, laughter really is the best medicine. A mere chuckle is enough to expand cardiac tissue and increase the flow of oxygen throughout the body, thus exercising a weakened heart, according to a new ...

It seems that laughter therapy is no joke. Structured interventions that aim to tickle our funny bone, like laughter yoga or hospital clowns, really do appear to reduce anxiety and improve life ...

Whether it’s an inside joke with your friend or watching a compilation of silly moments on an episode of America’s Funniest Home Videos, nothing beats a good laugh. But humor isn’t just an enjoyable ...

I'm sitting down, pretending my voice is coming from my hand, which is up in the air and shaped like a puppet, when I suddenly burst into raucous, out-of-control laughter. From the bottom of the ...

Robotic dogs, laughter therapy and mindfulness are some of the ways that might help people - particularly the elderly - cope with loneliness and social isolation while social distancing, say ...

Laughter may be the best medicine, but the role laughter plays in psychotherapy has been disputed since the days of Freud. Some early therapists believed that laughter could have a harmful effect, ...

A client jokingly told me his cat was traumatized because “it heard profanity” in the house. I thought he said the cat was upset because of “turd profanity.” I asked, “Is there something about ‘turds’ ...