Do older people have a sense of humor?
Yes and no!
Do notIf you have children who constantly harass you to buy them the latest in personal electronic instruments, that is, iPhone, iPad, iPod, etc.
Yes, but in ways that the very young cannot understand or misinterpret.
For instance, Jennifer stanley, a professor of psychology at the University of Akron, Ohio, did a study of people of different ages by showing them different comedy clips and asking them to rate the “grace” of each one.
Your findings?
The older participants did not find the aggressive type of humor funny, laughing at the expense of others.
What made them laugh was the affiliative humor, jokes that bring people together through a funny or awkward situation.
Jennifer posited that this is probably her way of dealing with losses as a result of aging: physical and emotional setbacks, impaired cognitive abilities, and loss of friends who have passed away.
In another study, Brian carpenter, a professor of psychology, theorized that due to their diminished cognitive abilities, older people may have a harder time understanding what the joke is about.
This story illustrates Carpenter’s point:
An elderly gentleman and a young cheater were sitting at a bar counter when the bartender made a wry joke.
Only the young man laughed.
When he left, the old man laughed.
The bartender was confused and wondered what was wrong.
It turned out that the elders found the joke funny, but did not immediately understand it.
What these studies show is that older people have a sense of humor. They just have a different taste or they may not see the joke right away.
In a sense, this is good for the world.
Can you imagine if the approximately 876 million people over the age of 65, worldwide, could no longer find humor in life? It will be like having a second Ice Age: the world will be very cold.
Without the glowing smile of the elderly, life would be less colorful, without their boisterous laughter, a grave would be happier.
And from a personal point of view, what can a good laugh do for the elderly?
For starters, if you don’t make them live longer, it will make them die happier.
And here’s more:
Benefits of a good sense of humor:
A good laugh makes you feel good. And it is contagious.
Studies on studies show that laughing is good for your health. But we don’t need to pore over scientific papers to see how exhilarating laughter is.
In specific ways, laughter is …
1. As an antioxidant:
A good laugh relieves stress, one of the main culprits in the body’s production of free radicals, those microscopic types that could cause untold damage to your body.
With the stress removed from the picture, your body can make more antioxidants that help boost your immune system.
In addition to that, laughter lowers stress hormones, such as cortisol, epinephrine, and adrenaline, which are known to constrict blood vessels and affect their function.
2. A painkiller:
Laughter induces your body to produce endorphins, a powerful chemical that reacts with brain receptors to reduce or block pain.
Do you have aches and pains? Roar of laughter!
3. An exercise for the internal organs:
Have you ever experienced spasms in your abdomen after a long laugh session with friends?
That’s because the belly muscles received vigorous exercise. You could even get a 6-pack of crunches if you stick to it often enough.
Four. A good way to brighten your day:
A smile, a little laugh shared with family and friends go a long way in making your day more enjoyable and joyful.
5. A good emotional relief valve:
That little lid with a tiny hole that covers the spout of a kettle, the whistle, has a higher purpose than to let you know that the water is boiling – it relieves pressure.
Laughter is your “whistle” to help you remove some of the pressures of depression, anger, frustrations, pain, and so on. I’m sure you know how it feels after laughing at this.
6. Good for the heart:
Laughter expands the lungs and increases oxygen levels in the body, which in turn,
stimulates the heart.
7. Good for increasing memory, alertness and learning:
A study from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine showed that when humor was introduced before taking a test, students who laughed well scored higher.
He did not say if they studied more.
On the social side, a good sense of humor helps:
1. Strengthening of relationships;
2. Attract others to you;
3. Improve teamwork and cooperation;
4. Deactivate conflicts;
5. Promote group bonding.
While a lot of data shows that laughter is good for health and relationships, adults are pretty poor in the sense of humor department. While children are known to laugh at least 400 times a day, the adults could barely handle 20 smiles.
So how can you improve this?
These may seem outlandish, but they’re worth a try;
o Occupy your thoughts with things or situations that make you laugh
o Think of people who can make fun of any situation;
o Watch a funny movie, read a funny book, subscribe to websites that send you jokes of the day;
o Go to a playground and laugh with the children;
o Count your blessings;
o Or just look in the mirror and smile. It lifts your spirits and keeps wrinkles at bay.
Arthur Ward said: “A well-developed sense of humor is the pole that adds balance to your steps as you walk the tightrope of life.”
And when you pass 60, life is like walking a tightrope. You can trip and fall at any time.
So smile, be happy, and have a good laugh. That is the safety net that can prevent your fall.
