Humour and Laughter Therapy

In a medical article from Royal Marsden NHS Trust, London:

There is much anecdotal 'evidence' from nurses and patients to support humour and laughter as therapy. However, there is little research to support specific humour or laughter interventions as beneficial in the short or long term in the clinical environment. Humour and laughter remain potentially exciting and innovative tools for nursing therapy. They have a number of effects which could prove beneficial for many different nursing and medical diagnoses and appear to have the additional advantage of being adaptable to most situations. More clinical evaluation of humour and laughter therapy is required before its appropriate use can be defined.

Having said this a number of US hospitals are trying it and finding the results encouraging. Quoting kxmc.com:

"At Montefiore Hospital in the Bronx, cancer patients some with advanced stages of the illness are getting a boost through a therapy program called "Strength Through Laughter." It's among several types of humor therapy being offered by medical facilities around the country for patients diagnosed with cancer or other chronic diseases."

The next time you're seeking some alternative view of the world news that may just be beneficial to your health - why not check out Wonkie instead of surfing to your standard doom and gloom CNN or BBC type websites!