Laughter is exercise

Dr William F. Fry

Oh wow!

That is great news!

Dr. William F. Fry, psychiatrist at Stanford University, California, began studying the physiological effects of laughter in the late 1960's. His research is oft quoted (I've added some of the references below), but the research papers do not appear to be available on the internet, so I'll quote from other authors. Christine Puder in "The Healthful Effects of Laughter' [Ref: The International Child and Youth Care Network, Issue 55, Aug 2006.] quotes that Dr. Fry compares laughter to "inner jogging", and claims laughing 100 times a day is the equivalent of 10 minutes of rowing (Fry, 1977, 1979; Fry & Salameh, 1987). According to Fry, laughter increases the heart rate, improves blood circulation, and works muscles all over the body. This research is also quoted that 'Dr. Fry in one of his studies confirmed that 20 seconds of intense laughter, even if faked, can double the heart rate the heart rate from three to five minutes.' [Reference: Certified Laughter Yoga Leader training manual of Dr. Madan Kataria.] 

The good news is that laughter is cardio-vascular exercise, improves blood circulation and works muscles all over the body. No gym required. Even the infirm and elderly can benefit from a thorough workout through laughter.

So how does one "dispense" laughter? Watch the Marx Brothers movies as Norman Cousins did (see previous blog post); stick with amusing friends; or learn a simple technique to laugh for exercise.

[Fry, W. (1977). The respiratory components of mirthful laughter. Journal of Biological Psychology, 19(2), 39—50.
Fry, W. (1979). Mirth and the human cardiovascular system. In H. Mindess & J. Turek (Eds.), The study of humor (pp. 56—61). Antioch University Press.
Fry, W., & Salameh, W. (Eds.). (1987). Handbook of humor and psychotherapy: Advances in the clinical use of humor. Sarasota, FL: Professional Resources. Exchange, Inc.] 

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