Laugh, Clown, Laugh!
Lead researcher Dr. Michael Miller said, “The extent of the impact of watching a sad film was of the same magnitude as remembering episodes of anger and doing mental arithmetic, while the impact of watching a funny film was equivalent to a bout of aerobic exercise or starting on statin treatment.”
Dr. Charmaine Griffiths of the British Heart Foundation weighs in with this comment: “Scientists are becoming increasingly interested in the possibility that a good giggle has positive effects on heart health. Whether sharing a joke with friends or watching a comedy, a good laugh is likely to be good for your heart.”
I’ll let you in on a secret - some of us Earthlings who are blessed with a pervasive sense of humor, if not a keen wit (as wits go), have suspected this for years - and now our prayers have been answered! The more we laugh, the faster our blood flows! This could be the most delightful discovery of the new century since they reported that eating dark chocolate cures male-pattern baldness (or something like that).
Given the fact that medical entrepreneurs scour the countryside like a cloud of locusts, looking for the next fad to peddle to the American people, can it be long before we are all renting AHA-approved movies from our doctor’s offices? If so I would like to go on record as being the first physician to have the foresight to advise all potential heart-attack victims to go to the video store (or Netflix) and check out something from this top 100 list immediately. Hurry! Time is of the essence!
(P.S. - Just between you and me, film number 61 on that list is a heck of a lot funnier than number 2 - and I could never understand what was so great about number 89…I just didn’t get it. Will this take a year off my life?)
UPDATE: Ali from the group blog Blendor says number 15 is tops on his list, but let’s get serious - if you were scheduled for a cardiac cath there’s only one movie that is guaranteed to keep you alive until your stent has been placed, and that is number 36.
For me, it’s Ghostbusters and Spinal Tap. I know the dialouge for Ghostbusters in my sleep. My son wore a Ghostbusters jumpsuit for 6 years (kept having to buy new sizes) and even now I think he thinks he’s Peter Venkman. Spinal Tap is guaranteed to make me howl with laughter. But if I really want to laugh I gear up all the old British comedies like “As Time Goes By” or “Keeping Up Appearances” or “My Hero” or “The Office” - good times!
Comment by Kim — January 17, 2006 @ 9:35 am
It’s interesting to note how comedies have changed in tone and format over the years. I can’t recommend number 15 enough, btw.
Comment by Ali — January 17, 2006 @ 11:58 am
Thanks for the link. I have subscribed to Blockbuster through the mail and will use this to augment my list. Frankly, I don’t know a great deal of these movies, especially the older ones.
My opinion about #31 is that you either get it, in which case you buy it and wear out the DVD, or you don’t, in which case you stare at the first group and want to call Crisis Response.
Comment by DrTony — January 21, 2006 @ 3:14 pm
Did anybody see Patch Adams? Yes, yes and yes! Laughing is healing.
Comment by Mary Janelle — March 1, 2006 @ 1:45 am