Laughter really is best medicine says study

Sessions of mirthful laughter – dubbed "Laughercise" by researchers – enhance mood, reduce stress hormones, boost the immune system and lower blood pressure and levels of "bad" cholesterol, researchers have found.

Like physical exercise, they also appear to stimulate appetite, offering a potential way to help malnourished patients who are off their food.

Laughter has long been thought of as the "best medicine" but recent research has shown that it really can have health benefits.

Previous research by US scientists led by Californian physician Dr Lee Berk has already demonstrated how laughter improves mood, reduces stress and activates immune system cells, especially those which combat cancer. Laughter has also been shown to benefit blood pressure and cholesterol.

The latest study from Dr Berk's team suggests that some of the effects of laughter mirror those of repetitive exercise.

During a three-week investigation, 14 healthy volunteers were asked to watch two 20-minute videos designed to be either distressing or humorous.

The distressing clip consisted of the first 20 minutes of the Second World War movie Saving Private Ryan.

For the "laughter" video, volunteers were given a variety of options including performances by stand-up comedians and scenes from comedy movies.

The researchers took measurements of blood pressure and carried out blood tests to check levels of two appetite hormones, leptin and ghrelin.

Watching the humorous clip brought benefits similar to moderate physical exercise.