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Gavin Rodrigues
14/07/2024
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World Laughter Day 2021
Dr Madan Kataria is the founder of the laughter yoga club movement that started in 1995 in Mumbai. Retired from medical practice, he devotes all of his time to writing, teaching, coaching, and training laughter leaders in order to foster the spread of laughter clubs. He is the creator of the immensely popular World Laughter Day, which is celebrated on the first Sunday of every May.
Dr Kataria had the inspiration to start the Laughter Yoga Movement because of the facial feedback hypothesis, which postulates that a person’s facial expressions can have an effect on their emotions.
According to DD News, the day also promotes the thousands of community groups around the world – typically known as Laughter Clubs – who regularly practice simple intentional laughter techniques that promote wellness and overall well-being.
How to start a laughter club?
The basic requirements required to start a laughter club don’t involve any kind of money. It only requires dedication and focus. You also will require:
- An open area
This will help you with your breathing, connecting with nature, and being calm. The advantage of selecting an open area is that you get to do other exercises during the session. This will help you keep yourself fit. An open area is easier to gather many people to join the club.
During this COVID-19 pandemic, you can even dedicate some time to keep your mind calm from your own balconies. You can get your families to stand out on the balcony or near a window of your house in the morning and get started with the laughter clubs. Other houses could join if you stay in an apartment.
- Time
The ideal time recommended is between 6 AM and 7 AM as you get the beautiful morning sunrise and nature will be at its best at the time. “The advantage of laughing in the morning,” according to Dr. Kataria, “is that 20 minutes of laughter in the morning keeps you in good spirits throughout the day. It energizes your body and charges you with happiness.” Morning walks and laughter therapy sessions are complementary to each other and the benefits of both can be experienced together, at the same place and time of the day. Moreover, pollution levels are lowest in the morning and this ensures a good supply of relatively fresh air.
What happens in a Laughter club?
In a laughter club with more than 3 to 4 members, the people say jokes and laugh at them. The members laugh in a particular pattern either 20 to 30 seconds of laugh and break. During the break they usually either do yoga or they do breathe exercises then again, they say a joke and laugh. This is continued for 20 or 30 minutes. The laughter clubs are generally combined with other activities like walking, jogging, yoga, stretching, etc.
How do Laughter clubs’ function during the pandemic?
Yes, it is difficult to function during the pandemic normally. But where there is a will there is a way. So, a few recommendations are to:
- Hold laughter clubs from your balconies or within your families.
- Use online platforms like Zoom, Google Meet, etc.
- Morning sessions following social distancing norms would be preferable in the open air.
Benefits of Laughing
Here are some of the benefits which are researched and proven to be true about laughing by various authors:
According to Mayo Clinic laughter has both short-term and long-term effects on the body.
Short term
- Stimulates many organs
- Activate and relieve your stress response
- Soothe tension.
Long term
- Improve your immune system
- Relieve pain
- Increase personal satisfaction
- Improve your mood
When you laugh, your heart rate increases, and you take many deep breaths. This means that more oxygenated blood is circulated through your body – improving your vascular function.
Research conducted by Vanderbilt University Medical Centre revealed that laughing for 10 to 15 minutes burns between 10 and 40 calories
According to a research done on “Humor and Laughter May Influence Health IV. Humor and Immune Function” by Mary Payne Bennett and Cecile Lengacher, “While in a frequently cited case study, Cousins (1) attributed his cure from ankylosing spondylitis to complementary therapies including laughter, empirical research supporting this type of response is currently not available. In fact, as can be seen from the above review, documentation of the effects of humor on various health-related outcomes in healthy populations is still in the infancy stages, and research documenting benefits in a clinical population (such as persons with cancer) is yet to be established.”
Norwegian researchers reported findings from a 15-year study on the link between sense of humor and mortality among 53,556 women and men in their country. The team assessed the cognitive, social, and affective components of humor using a validated questionnaire, and examined death from specific conditions: heart disease, infection, cancer, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
Read More
“Mumbai: Home of Laughter Clubs and World Laughter Day” by Steve Wilson, Psychologist, with material provided by Dr. Madan Kataria
- Cousins N. Anatomy of an illness as perceived by the patient.Toronto: Bantam; 1979. [Google Scholar] [Ref list]
World Laughter Day 2021
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