Smiling Is Infectious

June 16th is Power Of A Smile Day.

Well, on this one day of the year at least, iron out the furrows in your brow, and SMILE. The power of a smile is well known, you do it to someone, and there's a good chance they'll do it back to you - and you feel better for it. Smiling is contagious, and it has the power to heal the body, nevermind the soul.

With a big broad grin, follow me now on a happy journey, and make yourself feel good - don't forget, a smile is valuable ($$$, you'll see why later!)

Smiling Makes Us Attractive ~ Smiling Relieves Stress ~ Smiling Helps You Stay Positive

This lens was created on 6 June 2012

A Silly Celebration for a lesser known holiday - but a happy one :)

A happy superpower!

Children tend to smile up to 400 times a day compared to a happy adult who clocks about 20 or 30 of these facial expressions in the same period. It's no wonder that adults are often happier when surrounded by smiling children, it's back to the 'infectiousness' of the smile, and what's more, who can resist laughing and smiling along with the bouncy juniors?

Two studies from Uppsala University in Sweden between 2002 and 2011 came up with some interesting findings. They confirmed that when other people smile, it actually suppresses the control we normally have over our own facial muscles, so compelling us to smile. More of their findings found that it is extremely difficult to frown while looking at someone who smiles.

Why? Because smiling is contagious.

The Voluntary Facial Action Technique: A Method to Test the Facial Feedback Hypothesis

Photo Credit

How often have you walked passed someone, only to be greeted by a big hearty smile? Loads of times - we all have, and doesn't it makes us feel good inside, happy, and sometimes even valued?

As the number of muscles used in smiling is far fewer than those required for grimacing, why don't we smile more often? There are so many of life's problems and difficulties to navigate, a smile can be the furthest thing in our minds. If you have a stressful, happy or even an uneventful day, take a few moments anyway to smile with your colleagues - crack a joke, tell a funny story, recite a limerick. It will help to shift your mood, and share some joy.

Smiling is beneficial to our health, as it increases endorphins, dopamine, and serotonin which helps the immune system. As well as making us relax and lifting our moods, it increases confidence levels.

Image credit: Shutter-Shooter

Image credit: rivkamalka.com

This happy chappy we know is called a smiley or happy face. Smileys are also known as emoticons, these glyphs are frequently used to convey emotions in ones writing. They add a touch of fun to brighten up blog posts, as in Wordpress.

Text smileys are created by typing two or more punctuation marks, as such:

;-) is equivalent to

...that chocolate and money can't!

Love your chocolate? Yes, most of us do. However, this well known stimulant and inducer of pleasure has a negative side effect, and we know what it is.

So, if chocolate is out-of-bounds, how do we stimulate the brain? With a SMILE, of course. Yes, it's true, a smile has amazing effects that reward our brains. In the UK, a study was carried out using a heart-rate monitor and an electromagnetic brain scan machine to create "mood-boosting values" for certain stimuli. These British researchers found out that one smile is able to provide the same level of stimulation to the brain as up to 2,000 chocolate bars. And believe it or not, they also showed that smiling can be just as stimulating as receiving up to £16,000 (Sterling) in cash.

Wow! That's about $25k per smile... not bad... @ 400 smiles a day.

So, stay healthy and SMILE!

Graphix by Vix

This happy World War 1 poster was created in 1918 by artist M. Leone Bracker (1885-1937).

Image: No known restrictions on publication

Another very positive aspect of smiling is that it makes us look really good in the eyes of other people.

A recent study at Penn State University confirmed that whenever we smile, we don't only appear much more likeable and courteous to others, but we are perceived to be more competent.

Know that:

Whenever you smile, you look good and feel great.

Whenever others see you smile, they also smile.

Whenever others smile, they also look good and feel good, too.

In researching this lens, I have discovered that this relatively small act of smiling has a snowball effect, the more it rolls, the bigger it gets - and not only that, it is such a powerful way to improve your life and the lives of many others.

Image credit: www.mudraa.com

I bet you're smiling looking at these happy boys - every time I glance at them, I feel those smiley muscles working :-)

Image credit

Smiling helps the immune system perform more efficiently, this is most likely due to the fact that you are more relaxed. It also prevents you from getting colds or the flu.

When you smile, there is a notable reduction in your blood pressure. If you have access to a blood pressure monitor at home, give it a try. Sit down for a couple of minutes and take a reading. Then smile for a minute or thereabouts and take another reading while you're still smiling. Do you see a difference?

It is also thought that smiling helps to reduce the symptoms associated with anxiety. A consultant at Columbia University, Mark Stibich, PhD, believes "if you can slow your breathing down and change your expression, you may be able to turn around the stress cascade.".

Smiling works wonders to the body's benefit, by releasing pain killers, and morphine in the form of Endorphins. Serotonin is also released. Together these three make us feel wonderful; therefore, we can conclude that smiling is a natural drug.

Image credit Rob Hemphill

This gentle song was composed for the production of The Isle O' Dreams in tribute to Ireland. It was first published in 1912, when songs in tribute to a romanticized Ireland were numerous and popular both in United States and Britain. During the First World War, John McCormack the famous tenor recorded the song. (below)

:-)

When Irish eyes are smiling

Sure tis like a morning spring.

In the lilt of Irish laughter,

You can hear the angels sing. When Irish hearts are happy,

All the world seems bright and gay.

And when Irish eyes are smiling,

Sure, they steal your heart away.

There's a tear in your eye,

and I'm wondering why,

For it never should be there at all.

With such power in your smile,

sure a stone you'd beguile,

So there's never a teardrop should fall.

When your sweet lilting laughter's like some fairy song,

And your eyes twinkle bright as can be,

You should laugh all the while and all other times smile,

And now smile a smile for me.

Chorus

When Irish eyes are smiling Sure it's like a morning spring.

In the lilt of Irish laughter,

You can hear the angels sing.

When Irish hearts are happy,

All the world seems bright and gay.

And when Irish eyes are smiling,

Sure, they steal your heart away.

Lyrics from: www.ireland-information.com

Image by Rob Hemphill