How frequently do you enjoy a rich, hearty laugh?
If the answer is "often," then your laugh may be heartier than you know, say researchers at the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore.
Their study, which came out last year, suggests that regular doses of laughter may protect you against a heart attack. The research indicates that people with heart disease are 40 percent less likely to laugh in various situations than are people of the same age who don't have heart disease.
The study may be the first to draw a direct link between laughter and a healthy heart, but for some health professionals and lay people alike, the research just back ups what they've been preaching and practicing for years -- that a sense of humor and a positive attitude are powerful rim shots against ill health.
"The old saying that 'laughter is the best medicine' definitely appears to be true when it comes to protecting your heart," said Dr. Michael Miller, director of the Center for Preventive Cardiology at the University of Maryland Medical Center, in a news release.
Miller said center researchers aren't sure how a sense of humor may help stave off heart disease. But they do know that mental stress is associated with the breaking down of the protective barrier lining the blood vessels. This breakdown can lead to the buildup of fat and cholesterol in coronary arteries and eventually to a heart attack, Miller said.
The study involved 300 people, half of whom had either suffered a heart attack or had undergone coronary bypass. The other half were of similar age but were free of heart disease. All the participants filled out two questionnaires, one designed to determine how often they laugh in certain situations, and the other measuring anger and hostility.
People with heart disease -- America's No. 1 killer -- had a harder time finding humor in potentially uncomfortable situations. And even in positive situations, they laughed less than did people with healthy hearts. Plus, participants with heart disease were more prone to anger and hostility.
"We know that exercising, not smoking and eating foods low in saturated fat will reduce the risk of heart disease," Miller said in the news release. "Perhaps regular, hearty laughter should be added to the list."
A Psychologist Practices What He Preaches
Steven Sultanoff, a clinical psychologist based in Irvine, California, has long incorporated humor into his practice. He says that when a patient he's treating for an emotional disorder also is at risk of heart disease, "We talk about diet, we talk about medication, we talk about vitamin E, and we talk about humor."
Sultanoff shares his belief in laughter as a preventive and healing measure in seminars and on his Web site, www.humormatters.com. He calls it "The Land of Mirth and Funny," and among other things it offers a joke of the week, humorous bumper stickers, kids' riddles and even promises in the near future the chance to buy rubber chickens and funny glasses.
"The research is very clear that humor changes perspective and can lead to a healthier outlook," he says. "And that can lead to improved overall health."
In his practice, Sultanoff asks his patients to look for one funny thing in their environment every day and then write it down in a humor log. He says that when they go back and read the journal, they can recapture the joy they experienced the first time.
"We talk about events where they laughed so hard that they almost fell over, and how that immediately elevated their mood," he says. "If in a session I can get them to experience that humor and that joy, they feel better and they learn, 'I do have the ability to manage my emotions.' "
Sultanoff says he's an example of a person who wasn't a jokester or a cutup but who taught himself to find humor in everyday life. For instance, he was on a Virgin Atlantic plane recently and noticed the flight attendant cleaning up after the meal service. Sultanoff saw the words "Virgin Recycling" on the side of her trash bag and chuckled.
So does Sultanoff prescribe "two Marx Brothers movies and call me in the morning"?
"Watching a funny film or a sitcom won't cure you of anything, but maybe it's a start," he says, "The real therapeutic goal is to incorporate humor into your lifestyle. If you learn to look for it, you'll find humor just about wherever you go."
'I Feel Marvelous'
Even as a child, John Kernell, 67, says he was good at unearthing life's funnier moments. His skill as a humorist served him well as a speechwriter and public-relations executive. But it didn't immunize him from stress or offset four decades of smoking. So when he retired and moved to Mexico a decade ago, he went with borderline high blood pressure.
He also went with a serious retirement agenda: studying classical piano at a conservatory, playing piano at a restaurant, teaching English at a local orphanage and working as a part-time consultant, promoting U.S. soft wood for use in timber-frame housing in Mexico. He tried to manage his hypertension with diet and yoga, but one day in 1995, he felt his whole left side go limp.
"I blew a small hole in my artery," Kernell says matter-of-factly of his moderate stroke. Suddenly, his plans went out the window and he was in Philadelphia, staying with relatives as he went through rehabilitation.
It was then that he realized he was living retirement in every other way but his way.
In 1997, after recovering enough strength to live on his own, Kernell moved to Charleston, S.C., and founded his own humor Web site. He calls it The Geezer Brigade (http://www.thegeezerbrigade.com), where for $24 a year, about 200 members get a humorous newsletter, access to topical discussions, member essays and a daily one-page e-mail from Kernell, the self-appointed "Geezer in Chief."
The e-mails are chock full of wry, tongue-in-cheek observations that Kernell has collected, many of which are about aging. A recent one included a "then and now" feature. A sample: 1970 - Long hair; 2000 - Longing for hair. 1970 - Keg; 2000 - EKG. 1970 - Seeds and stems; 2000 - Roughage.
Life is funny again. His blood pressure is down, he has shed the leg brace that he had worn since the stroke, and doctors tell him he has a normal life expectancy.
"I've turned something I enjoy -- humor -- into something satisfying," Kernell says. "And I feel marvelous."
For fun, Kernell tried his hand at one of the questions on the University of Maryland Medical Center quiz. "If you arrived at a party and found that someone else was wearing a piece of clothing identical to yours, would you: (a) not find it particularly amusing; (b) be amused but not show it outwardly; (c) smile; (d) laugh, or (e) laugh heartily."
"I'd go over and say, 'You have lousy taste in clothes,' " Kernell says.
Then he laughed -- heartily.
Dennis Arp is an Orange County, California-based writer specializing in health-related topics.
