Laughter Whets The Appetite

By Jody Smith HERWriter

Rate This

Dr. Lee Berk and Dr. Stanley Tan have been researching laughter and the body's response to it for well over twenty years. They've learned that laughter fine-tunes the hormones, and decreases stress hormones. Laughter hones the immune system, increasing antibodies and triggering T-cells and Natural Killer cells. And they have reason to believe that there is much more to learn about this pleasant pastime.

"In the current study, 14 healthy volunteers were recruited to a three-week study to examine the effects that eustress (mirthful laughter) and distress have on modulating the key hormones that control appetite. During the study, each subject was required to watch one 20-minute video at random that was either upsetting (distress) or humorous (eustress) in nature."

The volunteers who watched the distressing video had no change in appetite. But the volunteers who watched the funny video had an increase in appetite. This was determined by measuring the two hormones leptin and ghrelin.

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-04/foas-sfb042210.php

Add a CommentComments

There are no comments yet. Be the first one and get the conversation started!

Champion

Jody Smith HERWriter View Profile Send Message

We value and respect our HERWriters' experiences, but everyone is different. Many of our writers are speaking from personal experience, and what's worked for them may not work for you. Their articles are not a substitute for medical advice, although we hope you can gain knowledge from their insight.