Laughter is good medicine for heart Published Feb. 25, 2011 By Shari Lopatin TriWest Healthcare Alliance TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- The next time you're laughing with your friends at a funny joke, you're helping your heart--literally. Your body's arteries--the blood vessels which carry oxygen-filled blood from the heart to the rest of your body--respond to laughter in a positive way, according to a Harvard Health Letter published in November 2010. In fact, laughter could improve blood flow and long-term, overall health. Studies are also showing how laughter not only improves your mental well-being, but makes your heart smile too. Heart Disease Patients Laugh Less? In 2000, the University of Maryland Medical Center published the first study stating that laughter may help prevent heart disease. In it, researchers found that people with heart disease were 40 percent less likely to laugh, in any situation, than people of the same age without heart disease. Those with heart disease were actually less likely to recognize humor at all. They also tended to display more anger and hostility in general. Laughter and Stress Reduction Psychology experts commonly agree that laughter and humor are great ways to help reduce stress. According to a 2005 report published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, stress can cause one's blood pressure to rise. High blood pressure is at least twice as strong a predictor of death as smoking or high cholesterol. That's why relieving stress on a regular basis is important to keeping one's blood pressure down. "Humor is absolutely a coping strategy for dealing with stress and adversity," said Dr. Blake Chaffee, a psychologist and the vice president of Integrated Health Care Services at TriWest Healthcare Alliance. "If you can see the humor in something, you can mitigate the stress and the negative effects it has on you." Dr. Chaffee said if not dealt with, stress can put people at an increased risk of: · Heart disease · Sleep problems · Digestive problems · Depression · Obesity Need Additional Help De-Stressing? If the stresses of life are getting to you, and you find yourself struggling to cope, you may be eligible for the TRICARE Assistance Program, or TRIAP. This program offers non-medical, but professional counseling via chat, phone, or the Web. With an Internet-connected computer and a Webcam, you can talk to licensed therapists about issues such as stress or relationship problems. These discussions are completely non-reportable (unless required by law) and are available 24/7/365--so you can make an appointment that works with your schedule. Think you want more information? Curious to see if you're eligible? Visit www.triwest.com/OnlineCare.