The Benefits of Smiling
Posted: March 29, 2018 | Author: Annelean Botha, Yorkshire Academy Preschool teacher
Smile. Go ahead, do it. Smile as big and wide as you want. Every time you do there are several things that happen to you and people around you as a result.
Smiling, believe it or not, has some actual health benefits. Smiling can help you live longer and be nicer to people in general. There’s some actual science behind this. Let me explain. When you smile, your brain releases dopamine, endorphins, and serotonin into your bloodstream. Basically, you can trick yourself into being happy. I don’t know about you, but that sounds pretty good to me.
In a fast-paced, stress-filled world, we don’t have a ton of time for each other, and so we feel the need to make time to be helpful or do something every day to make other people happy. Really, though, the smartest thing you can do is smile. Next time you are at the grocery store, in the carpool line or at the bank, look at the people around you and smile. Most importantly, smile at the ones you care about the most. We can all use a little less harshness in this world, and the benefits of smiling are too great to ignore.
This article from Neuro Nation claims that whenever you smile, other people smile too. In some ways it is infectious. That is an infection I can live with. The article goes on to say that if you smile and laugh more frequently, it will become a habit. Even when you fake a smile, your brain experiences the smile as the real thing, since it doesn’t immediately recognize the difference between a genuine and a forced smile.
Neuro Nation also recommends spending time with positive people who are fun-loving and optimistic. All these things can help cheer you up and keep you positive. Let’s use this easy tool to make our lives and those of the people around us a little brighter and happier, and let’s keep on smiling!