Feelings and Humour
Doctors are starting to believe that laughter not only improves your state of mind, but actually
affects your entire physical well-being. It also helps improve your personal relationships. Britain’s
first laughter therapist Robert Holden says: ‘Instinctively we know that laughing helps us feel
healthy and alive. Each time we laugh we feel better and more content.’
But we could be losing our ability to laugh. A French newspaper found that in 1930 the French
laughed on average for nineteen minutes per day. By 1980 this had fallen to six minutes. Eighty per
cent of the people questioned said that they would like to laugh more. Other research suggests that
children laugh 400 times a day, but by the time they reach adulthood this has been reduced to
about fifteen times. Somewhere in the process of growing up we lose an astonishing 385 laughs a
day.
William Fry-a psychiastrist from California-studied the effects of laughter on the body. He got
patients to watch Laurel and Hardy films, and monitored their blood pressure, heart rate and muscle
tone. He found that laughter has a similar effect to physical exercise. It speeds up the heart rate,
increases blood pressure and quickens breathing. It also makes our facial and stomach work. Fry
thinks laughter is a type of jogging on the spot.
Laughter can even provide a kind of pain relief. Fry has proved that laughter produces endorphins-
chemicals in the body that relieve pain. Researchers from Texas tested this. They divided forty
university students into four groups. The first group listened to a funny cassette for twenty minutes,
the second listened to a cassette intended to relax them, the third group heard an informative tape,
while the fourth group listened to no tape at all. Researchers found that if they produced pain in the
students, those who had listened to the humorous tape could tolerate the discomfort for much
longer.
1. Are the following statements « true » or « false »?
a) Laughter does not improve our physical condition.
b) People who laugh are less likely to develop illnesses.
c) In the past the French used to laugh more than they do today.
d) Growing old increases our ability to laugh.
e) Laughter can produce pain in the body.
2. In which paragraph are only the physical effects of laughter mentioned?
3. Fill in the following table with information from the text.
Non-physical effects of laughter Physical effects of laughter
● ●
● ●
● ●
4. Answer the following questions according to the text.
a. How do we feel each time we laugh?
b. What reduces our ability to laugh?
c. What was the purpose of the experiment carried out by researchers from Texas?
d. How does laughter help relieve pain?
5. Copy the title you think is the most appropriate.
a) What Makes People Laugh
b) Why Laughter is the Best Medicine
c) The physical Effects of Laughter
Text Exploration
1. Find in the text words or expressions closet in meaning to the following.
a) makes better (§1) b) examined (§3) c) to reduce pain (§4) d) funny (§4)
2.Fill in the chart.
Verb Noun Adjective
to tolerate
relief
informative
3. Ask questions which the underlined words answer.
a) A child laughs 400 times a day on the average.
……………………………………………………………..
b) Laughing helps us feel healthy and alive.
……………………………………………………………..
4. Classify the following words according to the stressed syllable.
personal relaxation ability funny
Stress on 1st syllable Stress on 2nd syllable Stress on 3rd syllable
II) Writing – Linkers of addition
Look at the following ways of linking two positive or negative points about something.
● laughter not only improves your state of mind, but actually affects your entire physical
well-being.
● As well as improving your state of mind, laughter actually affects your entire physical well-
being.
● In addition to improving your state of mind, laughter actually affects your entire physical
well-being.
● Laughter improves your state of mind. Moreover/Furthermore, it affects your entire physical
well-being.
● Laughter improves your state of mind. It also affects your entire physical well being.
Exercise1: Write a short paragraph about the benefits of laughter, using ideas from the text
and the linkers of addition introduced above.
9. Fill in each gap with one word so that the text makes sense.
In today’s world seem to be very anxious and ……………………………from stress.This stress is often
………………………………………and some people need to seek medical treatment in order to recover.
………………………………………,a more effective solution is for people to learn to relax.This can be
achieved through a variety of leisure activities …………………………………….as sport,reading,music,
gardening or even laughing. Many doctors,today,believe that laughing helps us ………………………..
stress,illness and gets us fit. That is why they say laughter is the………………………………….medicine.
Task : Use the linkers above to write a short paragraph about the benefits of travelling
Statement : There are several obvious benefits of taking some time off to travel before we
start work or university.
Benefits :
● Travelling is fun and exciting.
● It broadens our minds as we get to know other cultures
● We can have lots of adventures
● We can make friends with people from all over the world
5 Complete the sentences with a word from the box.
Use each word once.
boring exhausted exhausting worried annoying
surprising worrying surprised annoyed excited exciting
1 I think museums are ___b_o_r_in_g_ _ _ .
2 It was very __________ when I lost my keys.
3 We were __________ after our long walk.
4 Were you __________ when you did the exam?
5 The children had a really __________ day at the
beach.
6 Everyone was __________ to see Mark after two
years.
7 It was really __________ , shopping for Christmas
presents all day.
8 It isn’t __________ that no one’s come – it’s so cold
and wet!
9 Was John __________ to win the championship?
10 We’ve just had some __________ news – my uncle is
in hospital.
11 Pat will be __________ when she sees the broken
mirror.
7. Which word is the odd one out in each group ?
a) frightened excited terrified scared
b) happy lucky thrilled glad
c) depressed miserable sad confused
d) astonished upset amazed surprised
e) angry cross furious nervous
a. Bob was stopped by a police car because he was speeding.
IF ;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;
