Why Smiling Is Good For Your Health
Put simply, endorphins make you feel happy and relaxed. Plus, they can act as a natural pain reliever, which helps the body in times of discomfort or stress. Smiling also releases the chemicals dopamine and serotonin, both of which lift your mood and acts as a natural antidepressant. One study even suggests that smiling can help us recover faster from stress and reduce our heart rate. In fact, it might even be worth your while to fake a smile and see where it gets you. There’s been some evidence that forcing a smile can still bring you a boost in your mood and happiness level.
Research shows that children smile an average of 400 times per day, compared to the average happy adult who smiles 40-50 times per day and the typical adult who smiles only 20 times per day.
Benefits of Smiling
Everybody knows what it’s like to have a bad day. You sleep late, the car gives you trouble, or you spill coffee in your lap. But if you run into someone who is smiling, before you know it, you’re smiling, too. Then that bad day doesn’t seem so bad. A simple smile can change the tone and course of your day.
Here’s something you might not know—smiling has been proven scientifically to make you happy. And it can do more than that.
- Smiling Helps You Live Longer
Perhaps the most compelling reason to smile is that it may lengthen your overall lifespan. One 2010 study found that genuine, intense smiling is associated with longer life.
Overall, happy people seem to enjoy better health and longevity, though more research is needed to understand why that is. Research does suggest that happiness could increase lifespan by years—suggesting maintaining a happy, positive mood may be an important part of living a healthy lifestyle.
- Smiling Relieves Stress
Stress can permeate our entire being, and it can really show up in our faces. Smiling not only helps to prevent us from looking tired, worn down, and overwhelmed but it can actually help decrease stress.
Believe it or not, smiling can reduce stress even if you don't feel like smiling or even if you fake it with a smile that isn't genuine. When you are stressed, take the time to put on a smile. You and those around you will reap the benefits.
- Smiling Elevates Mood
Next time you are feeling down, try putting on a smile. There's a good chance your mood will change for the better. The physical act of smiling actually activates pathways in your brain that influence your emotional state—meaning that by adopting a happy facial expression, you can "trick" your mind into entering a state of happiness. This holds true whether or not your smile is real.
A simple smile can trigger the release of neuropeptides that improve your neural communication, as well as neurotransmitters like dopamine and serotonin, which can boost your mood. Think of smiling like a natural antidepressant.
- Smiling Is Contagious
How many times have you heard that a smile has the power to light up the room? While it is certainly a beautiful sentiment, it carries a hint of truth. Smiling not only has the ability to elevate your mood, but it can also change the moods of others for the better.
Your brain automatically notices and interprets other people's facial expressions—and sometimes, you may even mimic them. That means that you might spot someone else's smile and unconsciously smile yourself. Yes, it is scientifically proven that smiles are contagious.
- Smiling Boosts the Immune System
Smiling can also boost your overall health by helping your immune system to function more effectively. It is thought that when you smile, immune function improves because you are more relaxed (thanks to the release of certain neurotransmitters). Whether you're trying to maintain your overall health or strengthen your immune system ahead of cold and flu season, smiling may help.
- Smiling May Lower Blood Pressure
Smiling could have a beneficial impact on your blood pressure. Laughter specifically seems to lower blood pressure, after causing an initial increase in heart rate and breathing. While smiling has been shown to lower your heart rate in the face of stress, more research is needed to determine exactly how it reduces blood pressure.
You can try testing this idea for yourself if you have a blood pressure monitor at home. Sit for a few minutes and take a reading. Then smile for a minute and take another reading while still smiling. Do you notice a difference?
- Smiling Reduces Pain
Studies have shown that smiling releases endorphins, other natural painkillers, and serotonin. Together, these brain chemicals make us feel good from head to toe. Not only do they elevate your mood, but they also relax your body and reduce physical pain. Smiling is a natural drug.
- Smiling Makes You Attractive
We are naturally drawn to people who smile. While more severe or negative facial expressions like frowns, scowls, and grimaces work in the opposite manner, effectively pushing people away, smiling is seen as more attractive—and people may even assume you have more positive personality traits if you're smiling.
Not only can smiling make you more attractive, but it can also make you look more youthful. The muscles we use to smile also lift the face, making a person appear younger. So instead of opting for a facelift, just try smiling your way through the day—you'll look younger and feel better.
- Smiling Suggests Success
Research has shown that people who smile regularly appear more confident, are more likely to be promoted, and are more likely to be approached. Try putting on a smile at meetings and business appointments. You might find that people react to you differently.
- Smiling Helps You Stay Positive
Try this test: Smile. Now try to think of something negative without losing the smile. It's hard, isn't it?
Smiling can influence your feelings of positivity, even if it feels unnatural or forced. Regardless of whether or not your smile is genuine, it still sends the message that "Life is good!" to your brain and, ultimately, the rest of your body.