The old saying "laugh and the world laughs with you" speaks to the infectious power of laughter.

We love to laugh. Most of the time, we laugh with other people. We take a break from our cares and responsibilities and share a funny moment together. A laughter break sends us back to whatever we were doing feeling refreshed. Quite literally, laughter makes us feel good.

Did you know that all kinds of physiological changes happen when we laugh? A good hearty belly laugh not only helps elevate mood but can also help to reduce stress, lower blood pressure, boost the immune system and improve brain functioning.

These benefits have the potential to protect the heart and reduce problems associated with conditions as diverse as strokes, arthritis and ulcers. People who laugh heal faster.

Laughing gives our bodies a workout, as we use our diaphragm, abdominal, respiratory, facial, leg and back muscles. Our abdominal and intestinal organs and the muscles that hold them in place stretch and refresh themselves.

Laughter reduces the level of stress hormones such as cortisol, epinephrine, adrenaline, dopamine and growth hormone. It increases the level of health-enhancing hormones like endorphins. It increases the number of antibody-producing cells and enhances the effectiveness of T cells. Believe it or not, laughter even burns calories.

Connected to the physical benefits are the emotional benefits. To see something as funny, we have to take a step back. We need a little distance to get perspective before we can look back and laugh.

When something trivial at work develops an ornery life of its own, it's a lucky workplace that has a person or two who can use humor to diffuse heated discussions around vital issues like coffee or parking or e-mail protocol. Colleagues like this are priceless and can help a group regain the unity and balance needed to move on and effectively tackle more important issues.

Humor keeps us from taking ourselves too seriously. It binds us together, lightens our burdens and helps us keep things in perspective. And as comic Stephen Colbert says, "If you are laughing, you can't be afraid."

It should be noted that laughter can be mean and cause harm. When humor is at the expense of someone else who is belittled, doesn't understand the joke, feels the joke is offensive or is too upset to join in, humor can be a weapon that causes harm. Derisive humor that is demeaning to someone else is never truly funny. Healthy and rejuvenating laughter is associated with positive emotion and lacks malice.

And laughter can be practiced. It's easy. Just move the corners of the mouth upward into a smile, and from there practice laughing. For a little help, choose a sitcom rather than a drama on TV tonight, or watch a comedy on a DVD at home or at the movies. Remember how funny "The Pink Panther," or "Laurel and Hardy" or "My Name is Earl" can be? Watch them again. Or spend some time with a toddler just learning to walk and talk, or watch a kitten or puppy at play.

If something upsets you, ask yourself, "Will it matter a year from now?" If not, go back to practicing laughter - the best medicine.

- Sources: www.helpguide.org, www.stress.about.com, www.people.howstuffworks.com.

PEG FALCONE is a member of the Jackson County Healthy Communities Coalition's Mental Health Action Team and is a licensed clinical social worker who works at Southern Illinois Regional Social Services in Carbondale.