Dr. Jon LaPook joins comedy legend Alan Zweibel to explore how laughter can reduce stress and support heart health.

Recent scientific studies indicate that laughter may have tangible health benefits, including reducing stress hormone levels and improving cardiovascular health. Dr. John Lepuk, chief medical correspondent, explained that laughter can also boost the immune system, decrease pain, and increase endorphins in the brain. Anecdotal evidence, such as the experience of writer Norman Cousins and comedian Gilda Radner, supports the idea that laughter can provide relief and comfort during illness.

The segment also explored the communal value of laughter, noting how shared humor can foster connection and emotional support, especially during challenging times. The discussion highlighted that while laughter is not a cure, it can be a valuable tool for improving well-being and coping with adversity.

The science behind why laughter might be good for your heart

in today's health watch we've all heard that laughter is the bed at best medicine and it turns out that might actually be scientifically true studies show that laughter is associated with reducing stress hormone levels and it may improve your cardiovascular health uh... here to dig into all that a bit more is chief medical correspondent doctor john lepuk and special guest comedy writer alan zwaybel uh... who among other accomplishments was an original writer uh... on a little show you might have heard of it's called saturday night live uh... alan was i a in the ballpark of the name pronunciation are you got about five of the letters right five letters seven in the name but so good going to add that so i'd belted so i don't know uh... doctor lepuk what are the health benefits of laughing well you know bottom line it just makes you feel better i've done a deep dive on the science of it and i mean it can help your immune system your cardiovascular system it lower stress hormones and interestingly enough it can actually decrease pain and it looks like it increases endorphins in the brain when you have a big belly laugh and there was a writer and a journalist named norman cousins who in the seventies got unfortunately had a very painful illness where he had pain in his joints and his connective tissue and he found that watching tapes of candid camera and the march brothers and just having a big laugh relieved his pains for a couple of hours so i thought let's do a segment i thought about laughter and i thought immediately of my good friend and hilariously funny person allen's white bell why bell bell who has sweat bells are ringing and he was an original uh... writer on saturday night in the days of pollution yet akaroid and gilder radner he he was a writer there from seventy five to eighty and the reason why i thought of him was that uh... gilder radner sadly of course got ovarian cancer uh... in the eighties and a very interesting thing happened when she picked up the phone and called alan gilder called me i was out in l a i was doing a show that i created called it's gary shanling show and i said how you doing and she said listen i got some news i have ovarian cancer now she's thirty nine thirty six at the time and this was who expected this and i said what should i do and she said make me laugh and that became my role in my friend's life while she was going through this shanling and i did a show every week we sent her a tape as a like a hallmark card i'd call her on the phone tell her jokes and that's that was my role and as a matter of fact her last television appearance was on that show and we were walking along uh... and i said to her you ready to come on the show and she got cold feet for a second and she said you know something i haven't been on t.v. in seven years i don't look the same as i did i'm afraid that when i walk through the door the audience is going to know who i am and just as i was about to say to her don't be silly she says but you know something i have to come on the show my comedy is the only weapon i have against this thing and she said can you help me make cancer funny and i have to tell you she did a one-woman show at the winter garden in nineteen seventy nine okay and i was there and we're talking about the communal value of laughter surprise was under our seats at the towards the end or at the end she says look under your seats and she has the lyrics to the way we were and i want you to listen to this moment uh... that happened she might have a better voice than gail and i think about it anyway it's you know she you talk about the communal value of laughing and uh... she she's talked about you know so it's the laughter we will remember when we remember the way we were my father-in-law as you know was norman lear and he used to say that he'd go in the back of a taping of all in the family or a show like that and it was almost a spiritual moment and a moment of laugh the entire audience would pitch forward in unison and then come back and it was this communal value absolutely at work during covid when we stayed home on our own couches and watch comedies and who left by themselves you go to a theater you with other people and we all share the same emotions like laughing together in a theater i mean i can only imagine that has even a larger healing power thank you both so much doctor lepoux for your medicine and your medicine yes happy to help here's to the big belly laugh which definitely adds time that's right we'll be right back

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Breakdown