Family Health Zone

How Friendship Contributes to Good Health

We all know stress and anxiety are bad for us. If left unchecked, these emotional problems can have serious physical effects. We spend millions of dollars every year on yoga classes and videos, relaxation tapes, massages, spa visits, and herbal remedies, all in a bid to reduce our stress levels and live healthier lives. The truth is, there a great and easy remedy for stress relief that costs little no money: go talk to a friend.

For years, scientists have been aware of the fight or flight response. When we are confronted with a stressful situation, our bodies produce chemicals. These chemicals induce us to either stand up and fight the situation, or run away. This is how science has always viewed the situation, till now. The problem with this theory is that it was based on research experiments using solely male subjects.

Scientists believed that men and women responded the same way to stress; however, recent studies have shown that isn’t true. When women are confronted with stress, we produce oxytocin, the hormone associated with bonding. This response probably developed so a woman would protect her family instead of risking her life or abandoning them in a dangerous situation. Nowadays it means that when women are stressed, we seek out friendship.

The fact that we seek out friendships when we face stressful situations still doesn’t explain why these friendships help women relieve stress. There are several aspects of friendship that help us lower our stress level.

• Help in time of need. We feel more stressed in a situation if we view it as hopeless with no way of escape. Having a friend there who will do anything for you can make a situation seem less hopeless because we know they’ll always be there to bail us out.
• Support. We can feel less stress in our lives if we learn to look at situations positively and cope with them accordingly. Having a friend there for support and encouragement can help force us to look on the bright side. A friend can also help us strategize and come up with solutions about how to deal with the situation.
• Laughter. A good hard laugh has been shown to lighten our mood, release stress, and give us a more positive outlook on life. Being around friends can help us smile and laugh, no matter how high our stress level is.
• An ear to listen. Sometimes we need to simply vent our frustrations out loud in order to feel  better. We don’t need feedback; we just need someone with an open mind to listen while we rant. A good friend can provide this kind of support.

So if you want to live a long, healthy, happy life, get on the phone and call up a good friend. If you can’t call a friend, go out and make a new one. You’ll definitely be better off for it.

How To Reduce Stress Naturally

Is there too much stress in your life? Is everything piling up and weighing you down? Perhaps you’ve tried pharmaceutical and herbal remedies, but nothing seems to work. You should try a proven natural therapy that has been used for generations to relive stress and make you feel better.

So what is this miracle cure that makes us feel so great?

It’s laughter. Laughter is nature’s way of easing tension and helping us relax. So take some time to laugh every day and you’ll be feeling better in no time.

So how does laughter work exactly? Well, laughter works on several levels to make us feel better and less stressed. First, laughter works to relieve stress physically. When we laugh, stress hormones in our blood, like cortisol, are actually reduced. Laughter also gives us a mini workout, which improves out health and releases hormones that make us feel happier. Lastly, when we laugh, it helps boost our immune system. The stronger our immune system is, the better we feel and the more prepared we are to combat stress.

Laughter helps us emotionally release stress as well. Our bodies are designed to release excess emotions physically, through acts such as laughing and crying. When we laugh, it releases some of our negative emotions as well. It can also change the thoughts that promote our emotions. Laughter helps us think more positively, worry less, and be less stressed. Even if laughter doesn’t promote positive thinking, it can make us forget about our negative thoughts and feel better.

If you’re laughing with friends or loved ones, you are also promoting social bonding. When we are bonded with people, it promotes supportive relationships that can make us feel more supported and less burdened, so we feel less stressed out about our situation.

So what do you do if life just isn’t that funny? What if you just can’t find anything to laugh at?

You fake it. That’s right, fake laughing. Consider one study done on forced laughter. Participants were asked to watch a movie and either not laugh at anything or laugh at the jokes whether they thought they were funny or not. After the movie, participants filled out a survey on how much they liked the movie. Believe it or not the people who laughed rated the movie as significantly better and funnier. Laughing, forced or not, improves the way you view the world and helps to fight stress from your everyday life.

In addition to stress relief, laughing has also been show to help you eat less, boost your immune system, increase your pain threshold, and even help you heal faster. So don’t delay. Whether it means going to a funny movie or laughing for no good reason at all, start laughing your way to a less stressful life today.