Week 11: Laughter as Medicine

Humor and Its Effect on Cognitive Health

Agenda:

Review last week's class (Power of Purpose)

Presentation

Quiz

This week Homework:

Watch the video
Share some laughter with friends. Note how it feels.
After a fun laughter session, try to learn something new. Did it help?

Recording of lesson

Missing Missy

A weekend project involving a string of emails that I found really funny. I tried to create a visual of these emails. What do you think? Note: This is an example of satire, which isn't covered in our class.

Quick Links:

Brain HQ site: https://v4.brainhq.com

Handout

Presentation

Quiz

Zoom: Wednesday session (6:30 - 8:30)

Zoom link: https://sdccd-edu.zoom.us/j/9191959460?pwd=OXh0RE9ZTVZTWElTMUQ0ZzAxQzExdz09.

Passcode (if asked): emeritus

Do you have a joke to share?

Join our page to add your joke. Review the rules for jokes, and then click on a new line and type away.

Introduction: The Science of Laughter

Laughter may be the most contagious of emotional experiences. It involves a collaboration between mind and body. Although there is much we do not know about laughter, scientists do suggest that it is a social signaling system, which helps people to bond and even negotiate. In fact, most social laughter does not result from a joke. It can also occur when we are embarrassed or socially anxious.

Laughter is also great for your brain and your body. As most of us can attest, a good laugh can lift our mood, enhance our social experiences and can even provide a little workout for our bodies. This week, we will look at the role of laughter in improving our brain power as well as all the other benefits from this simple, free activity.

In our lesson, we will draw on research about laughter to identify brain and body benefits. This research comes from a field known as gelotology, the scientific study of laughter and its effects on the body and mind. The word comes from the Greek gelos, meaning laughter. This fascinating field looks at how laughter influences our emotions, brain activity, physical health, and social behavior. Gelotologists (researchers who study laughter) examine everything from the way laughter reduces stress and pain to how it strengthens relationships and boosts the immune system. They use tools like brain imaging, hormone level testing, and psychological assessments to understand how and why laughter affects us so deeply. While laughter may seem simple or spontaneous, gelotology reveals that it’s actually a complex and powerful part of human biology and social life.

Let's start with a video that I thought was pretty funny

Fun fact: Adults laugh approximately 15 times per day (compared to children who laugh about 300 times daily)

How laughter affects your brain

Laughter isn’t just about having a good time—it’s a powerful tool for improving brain health. From regulating stress to boosting memory, laughter activates complex brain systems that influence both the body and the mind.

Laugh break

The Talking Dog
A guy sees a sign that says “Talking Dog for Sale.”
He knocks on the door, and the owner says, “The dog’s in the backyard.”
He walks back and asks the dog, “Can you talk?”
“Yep,” the dog replies.
“Wow! What’s your story?”
The dog says, “I’ve lived a long life. I worked for the government, traveled the world, and now I’m retired.”
The man goes back inside and says, “Why are you selling him?”
The owner says, “He’s a liar. He didn’t do any of that.”

Speaking of talking dogs...

The Brain’s Humor Circuit

When something makes us laugh, several areas of the brain light up. This network—sometimes called the humor circuit—includes:

• The prefrontal cortex, where we process and understand humor.

• The temporal lobe, which processes language

• The limbic system, which helps attach emotional meaning to what we hear or see.

• The motor cortex, which controls the physical act of laughing.

• The reward system, especially the nucleus accumbens, which gives us a pleasurable feeling.

These areas work together to evaluate the joke, generate emotional responses, and trigger the burst of laughter. It’s a full-brain experience that happens in just seconds.

Humor can be personal.

Jokes rely on incongruity that can be resolved to a greater or lesser degree, a process that is reflected in a region of the brain known as the temporoparietal junction.

Many cartoons, dubbed theory-of-mind jokes, rely on the viewer understanding a situation from two different peoples’ points of view.These jokes are particularly difficult for people with autism to understand

Autistic people prefer visual puns, which do not rely on an understanding of the character’s mindset, to the theory-of-mind jokes.

Laughter releases endorphins:

Laughter also triggers the release of endorphins, the body’s natural feel-good chemicals. Endorphins help relieve pain, boost mood, and create a sense of well-being. In one study, volunteers who watched 15 minutes of comedy had increased pain tolerance, attributed to endorphin release. Brain imaging research supported the involvement of endorphins in social bonding and laughter (Dunbar et al., 2012). Although endorphins can’t be directly measured in real time, brain imaging studies show that laughter lights up areas associated with endorphin activity. This is why laughing with others often feels so uplifting and bonding.

Laughter lowers stress and promotes social connections

Laughter also helps reduce cortisol, the hormone most associated with stress. Chronic high levels of cortisol can damage brain cells, impair memory, and suppress the immune system. But laughter can counteract this.

In a study conducted by Dr. Lee Berk and colleagues, participants who watched a 60-minute comedy video (Gallagher) showed significantly reduced levels of stress hormones such as cortisol, epinephrine, and growth hormone. These reductions suggest a relaxation response following laughter. Some neurochemicals, like dopamine, may have fluctuated during the experience, but dopamine typically increases with pleasurable stimuli like humor. (Berk et al., 1989)

NOTE: In the 1989 study by Dr. Lee Berk and colleagues, dopamine itself was not directly measured. Instead, they measured 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC), which is a primary catabolite of dopamine—essentially a breakdown product that serves as a proxy for dopamine activity in the brain. The study found that DOPAC levels significantly decreased in the group that watched a 60-minute comedy video compared to controls (Berk et al., 1989).

This decrease in DOPAC suggests a reduction in dopamine turnover, which may reflect a calming or stabilizing neurochemical effect of laughter. It aligns with the idea that mirthful laughter induces a "relaxation response"—not necessarily stimulating dopamine spikes like addictive substances or extreme rewards, but rather modulating the dopaminergic system in a soothing, stress-reducing way. While dopamine was not directly measured, the reduction in DOPAC indicates that dopamine activity decreased, supporting the idea of a neurochemical relaxation effect rather than a typical pleasure-induced dopamine surge.

Laughing with others is one of the best ways to feel connected—and that social connection has powerful effects on your brain. Studies have shown that people with strong social networks are at a lower risk for developing dementia and tend to have better cognitive performance as they age.

Laughter strengthens social bonds by releasing endorphins (Dunbar et al., 2012), creating trust, and helping people feel emotionally safe. Sharing a laugh with someone—even a stranger—can reduce isolation and stimulate the brain’s reward pathways, giving your brain the message: I’m safe, I belong, I can relax and thrive.

Laughter strengthens the memory system

Laughter also strengthens memory, especially short-term and recall memory—by supporting how the brain stores and retrieves information. In a study on older adults, watching a 20-minute humorous video led to improvements in short-term memory and delayed recall, along with reduced cortisol levels. This suggests that humor may help combat age-related memory loss (Bains et al., 2014).

The humor effect refers to the tendency for people to better remember information that is perceived as humorous compared to neutral or serious content. This phenomenon has been studied extensively in cognitive psychology, including in a notable study by Schmidt (1994), which found that humorous sentences were recalled more accurately and more frequently than non-humorous ones. The improved memory performance is attributed to the way humor enhances attention, emotional engagement, and rehearsal—all key components of effective memory encoding. Humor captures attention more readily than neutral material, increasing the likelihood that the information is deeply processed and stored in long-term memory. Additionally, the emotional arousal linked to humor activates brain regions involved in both reward and memory, creating stronger neural connections. This makes humorous information not only easier to learn, but also more accessible when trying to retrieve it later.

Humor can be subtle, and as simple as watching a beaver eat cabbage

Laughter engages the prefrontal cortex to boost creativity and problem-solving skills

Humor helps shift the brain into a more relaxed, open state, which is great for creative thinking and problem-solving. Some studies suggest that humor engages the prefrontal cortex, where higher-order thinking happens—including planning, decision-making, and seeing things from different angles. When you're relaxed and having fun, you're more likely to come up with clever solutions and "think outside the box."

Laughter and your physical health

You’ve probably heard the saying, “Laughter is the best medicine.” It turns out there’s a lot of truth behind that old phrase! Regular laughter doesn’t just lift your spirits—it can lead to real improvements in your physical health. From your heart to your lungs, and even your immune system, a good laugh makes your body good.

Here’s how laughter supports your overall health:

Autocorrect Attack
I meant to text “I’m going to the store.”
Autocorrect sent: “I’m going to the storm.”
My daughter replied, “Take an umbrella and a wizard.”

Cardiovascular Benefits: A Heartfelt Laugh

Laughter improves blood flow by relaxing blood vessels and increasing circulation. When you laugh, the inner lining of your blood vessels (called the endothelium) expands, which improves blood flow and helps reduce blood pressure. This process is similar to the benefits of aerobic exercise. It also burns calories. Laughing for 10 to 15 minutes a day can burn around 40 calories, the same as a short walk.

Fun fact: Just 15 minutes of laughter can improve blood vessel function as much as 15 minutes of light exercise.

Immune System Boost: Laugh It Off

A healthy immune system helps your body fight off infections and recover faster from illness—and laughter gives it a real boost! It does this by reducing stress hormones that weaken immunity. It also increases levels of immunoglobulin A (IgA), an important antibody found in the mucous membranes of your nose, mouth, and lungs. IgA plays a crucial role in protecting you from respiratory infections, such as colds and the flu, by neutralizing viruses and bacteria before they enter your bloodstream.

New Password
The system said: “Your password must be 8 characters long and include a symbol.”
So I typed: SnowWhite&The7Dwarfs

The Pet Bird
A man buys a talking parrot, but the bird doesn’t say a word.
He returns to the pet store and complains.
“Did you get the mirror? Parrots love mirrors.”
He buys a mirror. Still nothing.
Next visit: “Try a swing.”
He buys a swing. Still no talking.
Next: “Get a ladder. Parrots love ladders.”
He buys the ladder. The next day, the parrot dies.
Heartbroken, he returns to the store.
“Did the parrot say anything before it died?”
The man says, “Yes. It said, ‘Don’t they sell any food at that store?’”

Pain Relief and Emotional Bonding: The Endorphin Effect

When you laugh, your brain releases endorphins—natural chemicals that act like your body’s built-in pain relievers. These powerful neurochemicals not only help reduce physical discomfort, but also create feelings of joy, comfort, and connection. As a result, it can boost pain tolerance and act as natural support for chronic pain. This can help ease conditions like arthritis, back pain, and chronic tension.

Blood Sugar Regulation: Sweet Benefits for Diabetes

Managing blood sugar levels is an important part of staying healthy, especially for people living with type 2 diabetes. While we often think of diet, medication, and exercise as the primary tools, laughter shows promise as a helpful addition to that toolkit. Research has suggested that laughter can lower post-meal glucose levels and improve insulin sensitivity.

Church Bulletin Bleeper

For those of you who have children and don't know it, we have a nursery down stairs.

Fun fact: Laughter can spread like a virus.

Hearing someone laugh can trigger laughter in others, even if they don’t know what’s funny. That’s why laughter is called “contagious.”

Improved Breathing: More Air, More Energy

Laughter isn’t just good for the soul—it’s a mini workout for your lungs and respiratory system! When you laugh, your body goes through a series of movements and reflexes that exercise your diaphragm, expand your lungs, and improve your breathing. It can achieve this through the improved lung capacity and oxygen intake mediated by the changes in your diaphragm while laughing deeply. In the process, the lungs are cleared out (similar to deep breathing exercises), which can be helpful to those who take shallow breaths due to stress, posture issues or age-related changes in lung function. In addition, a good laugh S activates the abdominal muscles as well as the intercostal muscles (between the ribs). This repetitive contraction and relaxation can improve core strength, posture, and breathing efficiency over time.

Some different types of humor and where they are found in the brain

Incongruity Jokes: These rely on something unexpected that suddenly makes sense in a clever way. They occur in the Temporoparietal junction (TPJ) which is involved in detecting surprise or a shift in expectations. Example: "Why did the scarecrow win an award? Because he was outstanding in his field.")

Theory-of-Mind (ToM) Jokes / Social Cartoons: These jokes involve understanding someone else’s thoughts or feelings (perspective-taking). They occur in the Medial prefrontal cortex and TPJ, areas associated with social cognition and empathy.

Visual Puns: Humor through visual double meanings or clever imagery; doesn't require mentalizing. These occur in the Occipital lobe (visual processing) and inferior temporal cortex (object recognition).

Slapstick / Physical Comedy: Humor based on exaggerated physical actions—think falls, clumsiness, or silly movements (like Charlie Chaplin or Mr. Bean). Brain areas involved include the Motor cortex, cerebellum (movement simulation), and amygdala (emotional response).

Wordplay / Puns (Verbal Humor): Humor through multiple meanings or sound-alike words. This type of humor may engage the Left inferior frontal gyrus (language and semantic processing), and the temporal lobes. Note: These jokes often involve a "language detour", processing multiple meanings quickly.

Incongruity joke

Theory of mind joke

Visual pun

Slapstick/Physical

Wordplay/puns

The Power of social laughter

While laughing alone still offers benefits for your mood and body, shared laughter in a group setting brings even greater rewards. When we laugh with others, whether it's with friends, family, or even strangers—we activate the brain’s social bonding system, driven in part by the release of endorphins, the same feel-good chemicals that help relieve pain and reduce stress (Dunbar et al., 2012). These chemicals create a sense of trust and connection, which is why laughing together helps people feel closer, more at ease, and emotionally safe.

Studies show that group laughter strengthens relationships, builds community, and may even help reduce feelings of loneliness and isolation, an especially important factor for maintaining emotional and cognitive health in later life. In fact, laughter in social settings often doesn’t even require a joke, it can stem from shared joy, playful teasing, or simply being in sync with the group. Unlike solitary laughter (like when watching a funny video alone), social laughter is a nonverbal way of saying, “I’m with you”—a message your brain hears loud and clear. Over time, these small moments of shared joy can add up to stronger social networks and better brain health, both of which play a protective role against cognitive decline.

Fun fact: You’re 30 times more likely to laugh with others than alone.

Most laughter happens in social settings, even when nothing particularly funny is said—just being around others makes us laugh more!

Laughter Yoga: Social laughter as exercise

Laughter Yoga, often referred to as internal jogging, using laughter as a form of physical exercise. The success of Laughter Yoga lies in its simplicity and accessibility. It grew as a grassroots movement, and promotes the ideal of non- political, non-religious, non-racial, non-threatening and non-competitive, voluntary laughter.

The core of Laughter Yoga is that your body knows how to laugh, even if our mind doesn’t see the reason. It does not require humor, jokes or even that you are happy. It suggests that you “laugh for no reason”, faking it until it becomes real. This laughter strengthens the immune functions, brings more oxygen to the body and brain, produces positivity and improves interpersonal skills.

Laughter Yoga uses laughing to relax the body and mind. It incorporates breathing between the laughter to achieve this goal. When you deepen your breath, you calm the body, which calms the mind, and you become more aware. At this point, you can experience the “now”, which frees you from the past and anxieties of the future.

Video: One minute laughter yoga

How to add more humor to your life

Personal sources of humor: Put some simple items (photos, comic strips, cards) that make you chuckle around the house. Look online at joke websites. Go to a comedy club.
Laugh at yourself and your life: Laugh about your situation, and you will feel less stressed. Consider laughing for no reason by joining a laughter yoga class.
Spend time with people who make you laugh. Do what you can to participate in funny stories and jokes. Find a few jokes you can remember and tell in group settings.
Watch funny YouTube or TikTok videos: Both of these social media sources have plenty of humor to go around. Although some of it may not seem appropriate for everyone, there are plenty of cat videos and things that have gone wrong to appreciate the humor in life. You might also look for comedy routines on your favorite music and podcast sites.
Speaking of social media, how about creating your own Pinterest board with funny things. This way, when you are feeling low, you can visit it (and restock it with more recent things).
Force yourself to laugh: It may seem hypocritical, but your brain really doesn’t know the difference. So, laugh away!
Spend time with your pets. Invariably, they will do something to make you laugh.
Do something really silly like talking in a funny accent or throwing popcorn into your friend’s mouth.
Remove negativity: So much negativity in the world. Turn off the news, play happy music and embrace things that make you feel positive.
Dance: What a fun way to feel great. For extra benefits, dance with your dog. They love the interaction, and you will get a kick out of it.
Learn some simple jokes that you can remember. Then, when with friends, you will have something to contribute.
Get to know some funny people and embrace their fresh way of looking at the world.
Get together with friends to play games that you will chuckle over. Charades is a great starter game.
Consider humor-based social activities such as comedy club outings and funny movie nights
Game nights featuring humor-based games
Find or start a laughter club in your community

Church bulletin bloopers

For those of you who have children and don't know it, we have a nursery down stairs.

Due to the Rector's illness, Wednesday's healing services will be discontinued until further notice.

Next Thursday, there will be tryouts for the choir. They need all the help they can get.

Barbara C. remains in the hospital and needs blood donors for more transfusions. She is also having trouble sleeping and requests tapes of Pastor Jack's sermons.

Don’t let worries kill you. Let the church help.

The Pastor would appreciate it if the ladies of the congregation would lend him their electric girdles for the pancake breakfast next Sunday morning.

Ladies, don’t forget the rummage sale. It is a good chance to get rid of those things not worth keeping around the house. Bring your husbands.

This being Easter Sunday, we will ask Mrs. Lewis to come forward and lay an egg on the altar.

Thursday at 5:00 PM, there will be a meeting of the Little Mothers Club. All ladies wishing to be "Little Mothers" will meet with the Pastor in his private study.

Summary

It is no secret that laughter is the best medicine. We have learned why we laugh, how it affects the brain, our health, and ways to incorporate laughter in our lives. Treat yourself to a funny movie this week!

References

American Lung Association. (2019). Is Laughter Good for Lung Health? Retrieved from https://www.lung.org/blog/laughter-for-lungs

Bains, G. S., Berk, L. S., Lohman, E., Daher, N., Petrofsky, J., & Deshpande, P. (2014). The effect of humor on short-term memory in older adults: A new component for whole-person wellness. Advances in Mind-Body Medicine, 28(2), 16–24.

Bachorowski, J.-A., & Owren, M. J. (2001). Respiratory dynamics during laughter. Journal of Applied Physiology, 90(4), 1441–1453. https://doi.org/10.1152/jappl.2001.90.4.1441

Berk, L. S., Tan, S. A., Fry, W. F., Napier, B. J., Lee, J. W., Hubbard, R. W., Lewis, J. E., & Eby, W. C. (1989). Neuroendocrine and stress hormone changes during mirthful laughter. The American Journal of the Medical Sciences, 298(6), 390–396.

Bennett, M., Lengacher, C. (2007). Humor and Laughter May Influence Health IV. Humor and Immune Function. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med., 6 (2), 159 – 164. https://doi.org/10.1093/ecam/nem149

Dunbar, R. I. M., Baron, R., Frangou, A., Pearce, E., Van Leeuwen, E. J. C., Stow, J., Partridge, G., MacDonald, I., Barra, V., & van Vugt, M. (2012). Social laughter is correlated with an elevated pain threshold. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 279(1731), 1161–1167. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2011.1373

Hayashi, T., Murakami, K., Tsuboyama-Kasaoka, N., Katsurada, M., Komatsu, T., & Shimomura, Y. (2007). Laughter regulates gene expression in patients with type 2 diabetes. Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, 76(2), 62–65.

Kim, S.-H., Kim, Y.-H., & Kim, H.-J. (2022). Effects of Simulated Laughter Therapy Using a Breathing Exercise on Pulmonary Function, Depression, and Physical Symptoms in Patients with Tuberculosis: A Pilot Study. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(16), 10191. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph191610191

Mayo Clinic Staff. (2019). Stress relief from laughter? It's no joke. Mayo Clinic. Retrieved from https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/stress-management/in-depth/stress-relief/art-20044456

Miller, M., Mangano, C., Park, Y., Goel, R., Plotnick, G., & Vogel, R. (2005). Impact of cinematic viewing on endothelial function. Heart, 91(8), 1001–1002. https://doi.org/10.1136/hrt.2004.044420

Schmidt, S. R. (1994). Effects of humor on sentence memory. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 20(4), 953–967. https://doi.org/10.1037/0278-7393.20.4.953

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