92 participants reported their annual medical costs fell some 30 percent after they joined the program. Helps Diabetics A Japanese scientist is unlocking the secrets of the funny bone by cheering up people’s genes. Geneticist Kazuo Murakami teamed up with an unlikely research partner: stand-up comedians—who turn their one-liners into efficient, low-cost medical treatment. Murakami’s approach is to use laughter to trigger energy inside a person’s DNA, potentially helping cure disease. Murakami had diabetics laugh at a comedy show performed by top stand-up comedians after listening to a monotonous college lecture.

The two-day experiment showed that the diabetics’ blood glucose levels (a key gauge for development of diabetes) became lower after they laughed— as compared with their levels listening to the boring lecture. He identified 23 genes that are activated with laughter. 18 of these genes control immune response and cell signal transmission. “A laughing therapy has no side-effects, meaning it’s an epoch-making treatment for clinical medicine," Murakami said. "One day it won’t be a joke to see patients receive a prescription for a comedy video at a pharmacy for medical treatment." Maintains a Healthy Heart University of Maryland Medical School discovered that laughter helps keep your heart healthy.

The scientists found that laughter-provoking movies cause the tissue that forms the inner lining of blood vessels to expand, resulting in an increase of blood flow. For their experiment, the team recruited 20 healthy volunteers to watch two segments of movies at the extreme ends of the emotional spectrum: the comedy "King Pin" and the war drama "Saving Private Ryan." They found that when the study subjects watched a movie that caused laughter, beneficial blood vessel relaxation increased in 19 of the 20 volunteers. In contrast, blood flow was reduced in 14 of the 20 volunteers following the movie clips that caused mental stress.

Overall, blood flow increased by 22 percent during laughter—and decreased by 35 percent after watching a clip that caused mental stress. Lead researcher Dr. Michael Miller suggests people should combine regular exercise with 15 minutes of laughter a day for good cardiovascular health. "It’s conceivable that laughing may be important to maintain healthy blood vessels and reduce the risk of heart disease," said Miller.

Laughter Inspires Clowning

Doctors, nurses and attendants now use "clowning" in hospitals to enhance the healing process with patients. They’ve discovered that when people are laughing and having fun, they experience less physical and psychological pain—and recover faster. So … laugh more, heal quicker, live longer, and enjoy life as a kid again!

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