Gelotology

Let's not develop a cult of laughology (though the study of laughter in medicine has already been christened gelotology from the Greek root meaning "laughter.") Humor is an important and documented adjunct in the life of both the well and the unwell, but as a therapy it rarely can stand alone.

One of the founders of gelotology (gelos is Greek for "laughter"), Stanford University professor William F. Fry, also experimented on himself in the early 1960s. He drew blood samples at regular intervals while watching Laurel and Hardy and other comedic movies and had the samples analyzed. He found that laughter enhanced the activity of certain immune system cells responsible for killing infectious pathogens.

Gelotology, the study of laughter, was established in the late 1960s in an effort to determine the possible physiological and psychological effects humor and laughter can have. One of the pioneers of Gelotology, William F. Fry, a Professor Emeritus at Stanford University, has done extensive research on the physiological benefits of laughter with very encouraging findings.