Shara Rendell-Smock has written more than twenty computer software manuals, numerous newspaper articles, including a monthly health column for The Sarasota Herald-Tribune.

Humour and Health

Humor changes our feelings, thoughts, behaviors, and biochemistry. It's all in our perspective. We can develop and nurture humor to heal.

So what is humor, really?

"Humor consists of laughter (the physiological component), wit (the cognitive component), and mirth (the emotional component)," Sultanoff states. "Research is actually studying laughter, not humor. The components other than laughter have not been studied (to my knowledge) for their health benefits.

"We are all familiar with the feeling of 'lightness' that follows deep belly laughter. Norman Cousins reported that 10-20 minutes of deep belly laughter gave him hours free from the pain of his debilitating disease. Laughter has been described as a 'jogging of the internal organs.'"

Research proves that laughter holds many physiological benefits. The jury is out as far as laughter triggering the release of endorphins. Sultanoff explains, "While it is a commonly held belief that endorphins are released during laughter, I am unaware of any research that supports this belief. It may be true. People consistently report that they feel better after laughter. However we must wait for the research to answer the question once and for all."

The evidence to date shows many physiological benefits of laughter:

• Increases muscular and respiratory activity
• Stimulates the cardiovascular system, the sympathetic nervous system, and the production of catecholamines
• Increases antibodies-the body's first line of defense against respiratory illness
• Decreases levels of stress hormones
• Decreases heart rate (in "heavy laughers")
• Increases pain tolerance
• Stimulates the muscular and skeletal systems

For more information on Humour and Health, visit Steve Sultanoff's site, Humor Matters. (And if you want some laughs right now, you can go to the Joke Contest page at my web site at www.rendell-smock.com.) But don't forget to come back here to read other Sideroad writers' columns!

Next Week:

Humour as a Coping Mechanism

Issue # 11
Tuesday, Jan. 13, 1998

Osteoporosis

Stats indicate that for those over the age of 50, one of every two women and one in eight men will have an osteoporosis-related fracture. Our sedentary lifestyle puts us at risk for this disease. Yet osteoporosis is not inevitable. Here's some information on this disease and how we can prevent it.