" laugh elixer "

it's one of our most natural instincts, and it's good fun. now, science is discovering that laughter really is the best medicine.

there's no question that laughing makes us feel better and research indicates that regular, high doses of humour can help beat illness, depression, chronic pain and improve our overall health and well-being.

over the last few decades we're laughing a third as much as we used to, and when you consider that one minute of laughing is equivelant to ten minutes of aerobic excercise, it's not looking good for our fitness. a fact that comes as no suprise for comedian nick giannopoulous:

'I've seen people come here after a hard day at the office and you can just see them unwinding as they begin to laugh and they start relaxing, and by the end of the show they're completely changed people'
[ nick giannopoulous : comedian ]

The physical and psychological benefits of laughing are well supported by the medical establishment. Clown doctors are a regular feature in our children's hospitals. These performance artists parody medical procedures providing comic relief for sick kids and their parents.

'they make me feel really good 'cause when you're in hospital it's really boring and there's not much to do. when they come in they give you a laugh and that's what i like'
[ daniel staunton : sick child in hospital ]

'i think clown doctors provide a breath of fresh air to patients and their families who are often very stressed. Humour gives people a sense that there is distraction and that there is good things in life; that there is lightness, that there is happiness, and that there is hope and hope is very important.
[ dr. kathryn currow - paediatrician ]

it seems a strange concept that, unlike children, many adults have actually forgotten how to laugh and are going back to school. Laughter clubs are cropping up across australia and indeed the worls teaching people how to laugh again.

'all that excercises have different health benefits; opening up the chest, getting oxygen into the lungs, getting the muscles worked out and so every excercise we do helps the physical and the emotional body.'
[ shirley hicks : club leader ]

Christine Kaye is a busy sales rep for the pathology industry. she reckons the mind-body benefits of laughter club have helped turn her life around;

'before coming to laughter club i had gone through some major surgery, i'd been made redundant from my job, so i was really going through a very bad time of my lide. i thought i'd love to bring that laughter bug back into me. now that i've learnt to be a bit more relaxed, its actually improved my relationship with some of my costomers and i'm a little more relaxed and i can smile more.
[ christine kaye : laughter club member ]

so, instead of expensive gyms, or the latest fad diet, the long term answer for good health and life quality may be a simple smile and a quiet chuckle.