Joke, Laugh, and Joke Some More
By Brandi Goodman
"Tell an Old Joke Day" is celebrated in July and encourages people to share old jokes and make each other laugh. This is for good reason. Laughing is an easy way to boost mood and bring other health benefits. Spend time joking, laughing, and joking some more as often as you can. You've heard that laughter is the best medicine? It's true.
Increasing Social Interactions
If you're sharing jokes with someone, you're having a positive social interaction. This is beneficial to one's mental health. You need to interact with others if you want to feel connected to people and not isolated and alone. Spend more time with friends joking and laughing and you'll be improving your well-being.
Boosting Mood
Laughing boosts your mood. If you feel down or upset, find something to laugh at. Whether you look up funny jokes online, watch a funny video, check out a movie comedy, or spend time with friends, you're likely to have your mood enhanced and feel better than before you started laughing.
Reducing Stress
Feelings of stress can quickly take their toll on your health and wellness. You may start to experience poor sleep, become quick to anger, get sick more often, and feel upset regularly. Reducing your stress levels will be the goal, and that can be done through laughing. Spend time laughing and enjoying yourself and you'll release some of the tension your body has been holding onto due to stress. It will help to clear your mind and ease your frustrations. Stress hormones are actually lessened when you laugh.
Burning Calories
Though improving mental health is the main goal of laughter, it can benefit your physical health as well. Laughing can actually burn calories. It may be a minuscule amount, but any calories burned are better than none. Spending at least 10 minutes per day laughing can burn 10 or more calories. The more you laugh, the more you'll burn.
Improving your mental health should be on your top priority list. Spend as much time as you can joking and laughing so you can start the process. Your overall well-being is important and you should do what you can to enhance it, even if it's something as simple as trading old jokes with friends.
Q: "Why are birthdays good for your health?"
A: Because studies show people who have more birthdays live longer.
You're welcome.
To learn more about your health, wellness, and fitness, see your local chiropractor at The Joint Chiropractic in Pinole, Calif.