The Humour Foundation is a charity organisation dedicated to promoting health benefits related to humour. The humour foundation was founded in 1997 by Doctor Peter Spitzer and performing artist Jean-Paul Bell. The main project of The Humour Foundation is the Clown Doctors. There are more than 50 Clown Doctors across Australia who have touched the lives of millions of people and entertain more than 100,000 patients, families and staff of the twenty hospitals they cover as well as the numerous local visits they make each year.
As well as operating in hospitals around Australia, the Clown Doctors have also made trips to Afghanistan and East Timor, donating medical equipment and basic necessities as well as helping the people find their smiles again. In 2004, The Humour Foundation of Ireland was established and as early as 2005 were bringing smiles to children and adults across Ireland. And while the foundation is run and funded separately to the one in Australia, it has developed with the help of the founders of the Australian organisation, Jean-Paul Bell and Peter Spitzer.
We have all heard the saying that laughter is the best medicine. While this may not be technically true, research conducted by The Humour Foundation as well as independent resources have confirmed that laughter has numerical health benefits as well as being a great stress reducer. Did you know that one minute of laughter is the equivalent to ten minutes on a rowing machine? Did you know that if you laugh for just fifteen minutes a day you can lower the risk of getting heart disease by 10%? Did you know that you can’t lick your elbow? Did you know that laughter can make you look younger by providing regular exercise to your facial muscles? Did you know that laughter is a great way to increase lung capacity? It also gives you better control over speech and helps to reduce nerves before a performance, which is why many actors use laughter just before a show. And did you know that by the end of the day, over 75% of you will have tried to lick your elbow?
All of these important statistics and more are just some of the reasons that laughter is such a useful tool in many different fields and an important part of our lives.
As laughter is so important in our lives, another non-profit Australian charity organisation, Rx Laughter, has devoted itself to the research of the benefits of laughter in the medical profession. The organisation bases their research primarily around pain reduction in patients who have undergone painful operations and treatment. Research consisting of patients who watched funny videos and read funny books while having a painful procedure against patients who did not shows a significant increase in the pain tolerance levels of those who watched the funny videos as well as being able to handle the pain for longer periods of time. This opens numerous medical benefits for patients including a reduction of anxiety in anticipation of the procedure which, apart from reduced stress levels, allows our immune system to speed the healing process. Other benefits also included improved sleep, the reduction of pain and greatly increased morale for both patients and staff. These benefits can be easily integrated into the healthcare system as a substitute for those who do not have access to psychotherapeutic care.
In conclusion, it is imperative that we include more laughter in our lives. The research findings from what I have shown you alone have staggering benefits for people in not just the medical profession, but in the sporting arenas as well as in everyday life. So go out there today, tomorrow, next week, and make somebody laugh. Have a good time in life and remember The Humour Foundation’s motto:
Smile often
Laugh everyday
Lighten up – be playful and fun
Tickle your funny bone and seek out opportunities to laugh
You don’t have to be funny, just have fun
Develop a humorous perspective and look to the funny side of life
And use humour as a tool, not a weapon.
And always remember this, no matter how hard you try, no matter what you may do; you will never be able to lick your elbow.
Bibliography
Foundation, T. H. (2011). Our Story. Retrieved March 9, 2012, from The Homour Foundation:
Gardner, M. (2005, August 18). Laughter is a great workout. Retrieved March 10, 2012, from Enzine Articles:
Penson, R. T. (2005, August 1). Laughter: The Best Medicine? Retrieved March 10, 2012, from The Oncologist:
Reuters, T. (2011). About this Journal. Retrieved March 10, 2012, from Hindawi:
UsaONE.net. (2009). Did you know? Retrieved March 10, 2012, from UsaONE Joke net:
