Perhaps Laughter Is the Best Medicine
Perhaps laughter is the best medicine
Introduction When people are discussing the health of human, all knows there are many factors that would influence our health including physical, psychological (mental) and social factor. In order to maintain our well-being, we would change our behavior such as do more exercise and hang out and talking with friends to getting more social support…etc, and that are some physical and social factor that helps maintain our health. Then, in the psychological factor, it’s mainly about our emotion. In the past 10 to 20 decade, there are plenty of researches have been found that how negative emotion harms our body, for example, sustained and serious stress or fear can alter biological systems in a way that we would eventually get sick such as heart disease, stroke, and diabetes (McEwen, 2007). And then, chronic anger and anxiety can disrupt cardiac function by changing the heart’s electrical stability, hastening atherosclerosis, and rising systemic inflammation (Janszky, Ahnve, & Lundberg, 2010). Therefore, is that if we don’t have such negative emotion and thus we can have good health? The answer is no. It is because to avoid negative emotion is just one-half of the equation you maintain health, the other half is focusing on the positive emotion such as happiness.
How happiness help to maintain health
Happiness and Longevity Firstly, happiness is highly correlated with longevity. A study by University College in London of about 3,500 people found those who reported feeling happiest had a 35 percent lower risk of dying compared with those who reported feeling least happy (Diener & Chan, 2011). Also, another study involving nuns was able to pinpoint health benefits that come with positive emotion. In studying the lives and deaths of the nuns, given clues to their emotional state, researchers were able to make a finding that positive emotion is correlated with longevity. The result shown 90% of the most cheerful
Introduction When people are discussing the health of human, all knows there are many factors that would influence our health including physical, psychological (mental) and social factor. In order to maintain our well-being, we would change our behavior such as do more exercise and hang out and talking with friends to getting more social support…etc, and that are some physical and social factor that helps maintain our health. Then, in the psychological factor, it’s mainly about our emotion. In the past 10 to 20 decade, there are plenty of researches have been found that how negative emotion harms our body, for example, sustained and serious stress or fear can alter biological systems in a way that we would eventually get sick such as heart disease, stroke, and diabetes (McEwen, 2007). And then, chronic anger and anxiety can disrupt cardiac function by changing the heart’s electrical stability, hastening atherosclerosis, and rising systemic inflammation (Janszky, Ahnve, & Lundberg, 2010). Therefore, is that if we don’t have such negative emotion and thus we can have good health? The answer is no. It is because to avoid negative emotion is just one-half of the equation you maintain health, the other half is focusing on the positive emotion such as happiness.
How happiness help to maintain health
Happiness and Longevity Firstly, happiness is highly correlated with longevity. A study by University College in London of about 3,500 people found those who reported feeling happiest had a 35 percent lower risk of dying compared with those who reported feeling least happy (Diener & Chan, 2011). Also, another study involving nuns was able to pinpoint health benefits that come with positive emotion. In studying the lives and deaths of the nuns, given clues to their emotional state, researchers were able to make a finding that positive emotion is correlated with longevity. The result shown 90% of the most cheerful
References: Borysenko, J. (2007). Minding the body, mending the mind. Hay House Publications. Diener, Ed., & Chan, M, Y.(2011). Happy People Live Longer: Subjective Well-Being Contributes to Health and Longevity. Applied Psychology: Health and Well-Being,3(1). Fredrickson, B. L. (1998). What good are positive emotions? Review of General Psychology, 2, 300 –319. Folkman, S., & Moskowitz, J. T. (2000). Positive affect and the other side of coping. American Psychologist, 55, 647–654. Gruber, J., Kogan, A., Quoidbach, J., & Mauss, I, B. (2013). Happiness is Best Kept Stable: Positive Emotion Variability is Associated with Poorer Psychological Health. Emotion, 13(1), 1-6. Isen, A. M. (1999). Positive affect. In T. Dalgeish & M. J. Power (Eds.), Handbook of cognition and emotion (pp. 521–539). New York: Wiley. Janszky, I., Ahnve, S., & Lundberg, I. (2010). Early-Onset Depression, Anxiety, and Risk of Subsequent Coronary Heart Disease 37-Year Follow-Up of 49,321 Young Swedish Men. Journal of the American College Cardiology, 56(1), 31-37. McEwen, B, S. (2007). Physiology and Neurobiology of Stress and Adaptation: Central Role of the Brain. Physiol Rev, 87(3), 873-904. Seligman, M. E. P. (2002). Authentic happiness: Using the new positive psychology to realize your potential for lasting fulfillment. Free Press. Tugade, M., Fredrickson, B. L., & Barrett, L. F. (2004). Psychological resilience and positive emotional granularity: Examining the benefits of positive emotions on coping and health. Journal of Personality, 72,1161–1190.