Learn to laugh and smile like Blooming Flowers.

Flowers are Nature’s finest gift to mankind. Flowers are soft and beautiful. They bloom in varieties of colours and in mixture of colours. They look very beautiful and attract our sights. They are useful to us in many ways.

A flower is a part of a plant. Flowers are also called the bloom or blossom of a plant. The flower grows on a stalk – a thin node – which supports it. Flowers have petals. Flowers may grow separately on the plant, or they may grow together in an inflorescence.

When flowers bloom Mother Earth is glad. When they bloom they bring loveliness and fragrance. The fragrance of the flowers fills the air. Their loveliness and beauty fills our heart and soul.  We are inspired and our mind is energised when we see a garden with beautiful flowers. We think positively and all our actions bring us good results.

When we are glad and happy we laugh out loudly. Laughter is an audible expression of inward feeling of joy or happiness. Laughter is a positive emotion and it is regulated by the brain. Though the act is regulated by the brain, there is no laugh centre in the brain.  When we laugh, we experience a sense of wellbeing as laughing lifts our spirits. Laughing improves our mood, lessen depression and anxiety.

When we laugh, Hormones like Endorphins, Serotonin, Dopamine, and Oxytocin are produced in the CNS and pituitary gland. These hormones are called happy hormones. When we are happy, stress hormones like Epinephrine and Cortisol are reduced. Body muscles are relaxed. Laughing stimulate the function of many vital organs like heart, lungs, kidneys and the brain.

We laugh when we see comedy movies; read jokes, come across some funny instances and when our body is tickled.   When we see others laughing, we also laugh. It is contagious.

Laughter has several health benefits:

• Facial muscles are exercised so that facial wrinkles can be avoided as we age. Blood flow to the face and the sense organs located in our face increases.
•  A good belly laugh exercises the diaphragm, contracts the abdomen,        

          works out the shoulders so that the muscles are relaxed.  

•  During laughter heart muscles contract and expand well and thus provide  a  good work   out for the heart.
• During laughter, lungs contract and expand vigorously so that toxic air is expelled from the lungs and fresh air is allowed in.
• Laughter increases heart rate, respiratory rate and oxygen consumption.
• Laughter helps us to breathe deeper, improves respiratory health and cures asthma.
• Laughter triggers dilation of the tissue that forms the inner lining of the blood vessels, the endothelium so that blood flow in the blood vessels increases reducing cardio vascular diseases.

• Laughter strengthens immunity and hence protects us from diseases.
• Laughter triggers happy hormones hence improve our emotional health.
• Laughter lowers the stress hormone level. This lowers our anxiety level. When stress hormones are balanced, we will be able to manage difficult situations efficiently.
• When stress hormones are dropped during laughing, our blood pressure lowers, heart rate and breathing slows down, muscle tension decreases.
• A hearty laugh improves our mood, lessens depression and anxiety, and keeps us happy.
• Laughter plays an important role in social interaction and social bonding. It enhances inter personal communication.
• Laughing gives us attractive and cheerful look. People who are happy look beautiful and young.
• People with a good sense of humor are very much liked.
• Laughter induces calmness and increases energy level and our performance.
• Negative thoughts produce toxins in our body. These toxins reduce the body immunity. Positive attitude towards life and living is induced when we laugh.

Children always smile and laugh a lot. As we grow old, we forget to laugh and smile. Lean to smile and laugh like the blooming flowers. Then life will be merry, happy and healthy. Therefore, Laughter is not just a medicine or a therapy. It is a way of life. If you laugh, the world laughs with you.

Flowers laugh when they bloom. Likewise, let us laugh and be happy always.

Learn to laugh and smile like blooming flowers….

Images of flowers are from friend Sathya's garden, Trissur, Kerala

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