The contribution of humor in our lives

Humor is a perceptual event connected with one’s sense of self, an expression of a uniquely human capacity to adapt to experiences and situations that may be possible sources of humor. Humor seems to be a powerful coping mechanism used to decrease fear, anxiety, and psychological stress. The appreciation of humor requires a wide area of neural circuits covering attention, working memory, flexible thinking, extraction of word meaning, and positive mood. The cognitive component of humor, which is probably mediated by the dorsolateral cortex, may deteriorate with aging. Laughter and smiling as communication tools may be lost in the early stages of dementia, when the clinical symptoms of dementia appear. The use of humor therapy appears to be an effective non pharmacological intervention contributing to significant increases in happiness and life satisfaction for the elderly people