There is probably nothing I would rather do than laugh. Every day you can hear laughter in the halls of FlagandBanner.com and that makes us all happy. My current favorite comedians are Jim Gaffigan, Leanne Morgan, and Nate Bargatze. Like Jerry Seinfeld, their routines are clean and clever. They can make something out of nothing seem funny.
Because I have no hobby, though I wish I did, I think of laughing as my hobby and use it as one excuse for why I am opening a lounge. It’s partially true. You laugh more when you are with people than you do when you are alone. I hope by the end of this year I am laughing my way to bank as well. lol
Nothing to laugh about?
There are times when it is hard to find something to laugh about. I remember when my husband and I separated for those 5 long years. To get through it I listened to Satellite Radio’s prosperous preacher Joel Osteen. He always started his sermons with a joke that made me laugh and he often talked about his mother, a 30-year cancer survivor with a terminal diagnosis, who beat the odds by watching cartoons all day and praying to God.
This memory came back while watching my sister belly laugh the other night. Her husband is in the hospital; he is going to be fine, but it has been stressful, of course. One night we took her out to dinner and laughed. In her face I saw again the healing powers of laughter and decided to ask AI for some insight. As suspected, there has been research:
Studies summarized by groups like the Mayo Clinic and the Loma Linda University suggest:
- Adults laugh about 15–20 times per day on average.
- Children laugh around 300 times a day. (I’m jealous)
Researchers measured and found that getting 10–15 minutes of genuine laughter a day can provide measurable benefits such as:
- Lower stress hormones
- Improve circulation
- Improve mood
- Increase antibodies and activate immune cells for fighting disease
Fake Laughing works well too.
There’s even something called laughter therapy (sometimes used in hospitals and senior programs) where watching funny videos for about 20 minutes improved memory and lowered stress hormones in older adults. And the funny thing is, your brain can’t tell fake laughs from genuine laughs. So fake laugh if you like. It clears stale air from your lungs, pulls in fresh oxygen, and stimulates your diaphragm. Not to mention what it does for your abdomen, chest, and facial muscles.
Happy, healthy and pretty…no wonder we all love to laugh.
About the Author
Kerry McCoy founded FlagandBanner.com in 1975 with just $400 and a dream, building it from door-to-door flag sales into a multi-million dollar enterprise. With over five decades in the American flag and banner business, her insights into patriotic trends and flag sales patterns come from serving customers nationwide during times of celebration, crisis, and everything in between.
Kerry is also the host of “Up in Your Business with Kerry McCoy” radio show and continues expanding her business empire through Kerry McCoy Enterprises while sharing the entrepreneurial wisdom gained from decades of building the American dream.
