Renewing power of laughter

We all need a laugh right now and perhaps a hug, and you may be surprised to learn just how powerful these two simple things can be

- Caroline Thain

Do you think you could stand in a group and just laugh and laugh and laugh – despite there being nothing funny? Because there is a growing body of Hertfordshire folk who believe that chuckling for the sake of it is the key to inner peace. And science backs it up.

World Laughter Day this month (May 3) celebrates laughter yoga, which has been shown to elevate mood, burn calories, reduce stress, boost the immune system, improve memory and thinking, efficiency and performance, raise energy levels and resilience and is a great social connector. Not a bad list, hey?

Described as helping you keep fit and healthy while having fun, it is centred on the idea that just pretending to laugh induces certain responses that are good for us. As long as you are prepared to laugh – even if you don’t find anything funny – the psychological and physiological benefits are triggered. Normal daily laughter lasts only three to four seconds, whereas laughing yoga is sustained for 10-15 minutes. Oh, and apart from its name, it has nothing to do with downward dog or tree poses.

In a case of ‘fake it ‘til you make it’, the good news is that once you start simulating laughter, genuine laughter usually follows.

But if laughter exercises sound too good to be true – laughter and exercise are not typically synonymous – here are two laughter experts who can help clarify. I envision them both as extra characters in that Mary Poppins scene, everyone in hysterics on the ceiling singing Love to Laugh with Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke.