Endorphins are a group of peptides produced by your pituitary gland and CNS to help increase pleasure and well-being. They also reduce pain and discomfort. We all know the effects endorphins can have on one's brain, but did you know there was such thing as laughter yoga? Speaking from experience, working out has definitely helped me out of dark times and increased my mood drastically, but I have never tried laughter yoga!
A study done by Ozer and Ates showed the short-term effects of laughter yoga on one's overall well-being. They focused on endorphin levels, sleep levels, and pain levels. They tested a group of individuals in a randomized controlled trial of 16, 30-minute sessions on a twice-weekly basis. They collected data by using a sleep quality index, as well as blood samples to test endorphin levels of the individuals. The study found that sleep quality drastically increased as well as pain levels significantly decreased. They didn't find any significant change in endorphin levels however.
After doing more and more research on laughter yoga, I have found that it is used in so many more ways and has many benefits. One study found that laughter yoga is used in combination with pharmacological therapies to treat IBS and has been extremely beneficial to some patients. It was proven to be more effective than anti-anxiety medications in relation to the gastrointestinal symptoms.
Lastly, there are countless journals showing the positive effect of laughter yoga on mental well-being in cancer patients, residential aged care homes, adults with aphasia, and even first-year nursing students under a significant amount of stress. It makes perfect sense that laughter yoga would increase mood and overall morale of someone who is having a rough time. Ultimately, it is another way of getting your body moving, even though it wasn't shown to increase endorphin levels.
Ellis, Julie M, et al. “Laughter Yoga Activities for Older People Living in Residential Aged Care Homes: A Feasibility Study.” Australasian Journal on Ageing, vol. 36, no. 3, 2017, https://doi.org/10.1111/ajag.12447.
Mcguire, Stacey Silverman, et al. “Simulated Laughter, Perceived Stress, and Discourse in Adults with Aphasia.” Aphasiology, vol. 35, no. 9, 2020, pp. 1207–1226., https://doi.org/10.1080/02687038.2020.1787944.
Ozturk, Fatma Ozlem, and Ayfer Tezel. “Effect of Laughter Yoga on Mental Symptoms and Salivary Cortisol Levels in First‐Year Nursing Students: A Randomized Controlled Trial.” International Journal of Nursing Practice, vol. 27, no. 2, 2021, https://doi.org/10.1111/ijn.12924.
Tavakoli, Tahmine, et al. “Comparison of Laughter Yoga and Anti-Anxiety Medication on Anxiety and Gastrointestinal Symptoms of Patients with Irritable Bowel Syndrome.” Middle East Journal of Digestive Diseases, vol. 11, no. 4, 2019, pp. 211–217., https://doi.org/10.15171/mejdd.2019.151.
Telles, Shirley. “Effect of Yoga on Teachers’ Self-Rated Mental Well-Being and State Anxiety.” Http://Isrctn.com/, 2019, https://doi.org/10.1186/isrctn90253431.
Özer, Zülfünaz, and Sebahat Ateş. “Effects of Laughter Yoga on Hemodialysis Patients’ Plasma-Beta Endorphin Levels, Pain Levels and Sleep Quality: A Randomized Controlled Trial.” Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice, vol. 43, 2021, p. 101382., https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ctcp.2021.101382.
No comments:
Post a Comment