English, maths, laughter — that’s the timetable some sixth-form students from one school in Brighton may be following after the introduction of laughter therapy classes to help with stress and anxiety. Can people be calmed by being made to laugh?
It’s well known that laughter is good for well-being — when we laugh (which the average adult does 17 times a day), it prompts a cascade of stress-busting reactions.
‘The physical act of laughing, the pumping up and down of the diaphragm [a dome-shaped muscle beneath the lungs] to expel air from the lungs, triggers the endorphin system in the brain,’ says Robin Dunbar, an emeritus professor of evolutionary psychology at Oxford University.
‘Endorphins make you relaxed, happy and seem to dampen down cortisol, a stress hormone.’

It’s well known that laughter is good for well-being — when we laugh (which the average adult does 17 times a day), it prompts a cascade of stress-busting reactions
Also, endorphins help to release nitric oxygen, a chemical which relaxes tense muscles. This enhances stress-busting properties. The dilation in blood vessels by nitric oxide may also explain laughter’s ability to lower blood pressure.
The reason it may have a positive impact on stress is unknown. There’s probably quite a complex network of brain regions involved in laughter, says Professor Sophie Scott, a neuroscientist at University College London. ‘But we do clearly see that the hypothalamus is activated, which we know has a role in stress,’ she adds.
Parasympathetic nervous systems are controlled by the hypothalamus (responsible to fight or flight). ‘As soon as people start laughing, you see a drop in levels of the fight-or-flight hormone, adrenaline,’ says Professor Scott.
These chemical changes make us calmer while we laugh — and afterwards. Basel University (Switzerland) found that stress is less affected when people laugh more.
While natural, spontaneous laughter has the most powerful impact, there’s evidence that even faked laughter can reduce our reaction to stress.
Motion creates emotion theory is how it does this. When you use the facial muscles involved in smiling and laughing, this sends feedback to the brain that then releases chemical messengers — for instance, serotonin — that improve our mood, explains Dr Natalie van der Wal, an associate professor from the Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands and an expert in cognitive and social psychology. It’s this response that is used in laughter therapy.

Also, endorphins help to release nitric oxygen, a chemical which relaxes tense muscles. This enhances stress-busting properties. The dilation of blood vessels by nitric dioxide may also explain laughter’s ability to lower blood pressure.
In a class of laughter therapy — also known as laughter yoga — participants do exercises that make them smile, such as dancing and clapping, and sing or say words that sound similar to laughter, such as ‘ha ha ha’. Yes, participants also have to make fun of themselves laughing.
This is supposed to trigger laughter and increase endorphin levels.
‘On top of this, the practice also uses yogic breathing, which slows the breath; and meditation, which may increase its stress-reducing effects,’ says laughter yoga therapist Emma Jennings, who is running the classes in Brighton.
This combination appears to be very effective. In 2019, a comprehensive review of scientific studies about laughter therapy was published in Social Science Medicine. It showed that laughter therapy had a marked effect on stress levels in 18 of 19 cases.
And it doesn’t take long to show benefits: a 2021 study by researchers in Germany and Canada found even just one 30-minute session could reduce cortisol levels. It’s this kind of evidence that led to Brighton Girls School starting laughter lessons.
As part of its social prescribing program, the NHS offered laughter yoga to patients. This is where GPs are allowed to offer activities other than medical that may improve mental and physical well-being.
But when it comes to laughter classes specifically, Professor Scott isn’t convinced about the practice being prescribed widely. ‘Some people greatly dislike being forced to laugh as they find it embarrassing or uncomfortable,’ she says. ‘In these people, cortisol levels might rise during the lessons, which would be detrimental.
‘For them, it might be more helpful if the therapy was delivered via natural opportunities, such as schools setting aside a separate period to have fun with friends. The social element of laughter is important; you’re more likely to laugh with others than alone.’
Emma Jennings admits that laughter therapy ‘is a bit like Marmite — some people love it, others don’t’. If you’re keen to try it, you can find a local class online (laughteryoga.co.uk) — or fake it.
Meanwhile, Dr van der Wal says: ‘Try to find something that makes you laugh for a minute a day — and make it a ritual, like cleaning your teeth. The more you make it a habit, the easier it will become.’