Laughter as a Modulator of Stress
Many studies have induced stress in the laboratory to demonstrate that humor can act indirectly on health by modulating one's response to stress. Humor can eliminate expected negative responses due to anger, sadness, stress during dental surgery, and stress in response to shocks, as measured by self-report, observation, or heart rate (Lefcourt, Davidson, Prkachin, and Mills, 1997). Lefcourt et al. attempted to find similar effects of humor on stress by inducing stress in the laboratory and using a concrete measure, subjects' blood pressures, as an indicator of distress (1997). The evidence that humor can modulate stress has positive implications for health, because health can be impaired by stress.
How modulation of stress can benefit health
Alternative Medicine | Laughter
Laughter as a Stress Modulator | Physiologic Effects of Laughter | Applications of Humor in Medicine