In a study on dry eye, Chinese and British researchers discovered that laughter therapy is as effective as using eye drops.
Dry eye is a chronic condition estimated to affect around 360 million people worldwide. Common symptoms include discomfort, redness, and a gritty or irritated sensation in the eyes.
Evidence suggests that laughter therapy helps alleviate depression, anxiety, stress, and chronic pain, while boosting immune function. It is recognized as a beneficial complementary treatment for various chronic conditions, including mental health disorders, cancer, and diabetes. However, whether laughter therapy has a positive impact on dry eye has remained unknown.
To explore this, researchers from China and the UK conducted an evaluation of the effectiveness and safety of laughter exercises in patients with dry eye symptoms.
Their results were based on 283 participants aged 18-45 (average age 29; 74% female), who were assessed for dry eye using the Ocular Surface Disease Index (OSDI) score. The participants were randomly assigned to either a laughter exercise group or a group using 0.1% sodium hyaluronate eye drops four times a day for eight weeks.
Participants with pre-existing eye problems, injuries, infections, allergies, or those who had recently used contact lenses or other dry eye treatments were excluded from the study.
The laughter group watched an instructional video and were asked to pronounce and repeat phrases like “Hee hee hee, hah hah hah, cheese cheese cheese, cheek cheek cheek, hah hah hah hah hah hah” 30 times in each five-minute session, using a facial recognition app on their phones to standardize the exercise and enhance facial movements.
The eye drop group (control group) applied 0.1% sodium hyaluronate eye drops to both eyes four times a day for eight weeks, tracking usage through the same app.
Both treatments were stopped after eight weeks, and any changes in ocular surface discomfort scores were measured at weeks 10 and 12.
The average OSDI score dropped by 10.5 points (indicating less discomfort) in the laughter exercise group and by 8.83 points in the control group, with an average difference of −1.45 points, showing that laughter exercises were not less effective than eye drops.
Laughter exercises also showed significant improvement in the non-invasive tear break-up time (the time it takes for the first dry spot to appear on the cornea after a blink), meibomian gland function (oil glands that help prevent tears from evaporating too quickly), and mental health scores. No adverse effects were reported in either group.
The authors acknowledged some limitations that might have affected the results, but stated that the findings suggest laughter exercises are not inferior to 0.1% sodium hyaluronate eye drops in improving the symptoms and clinical signs of dry eye.
“They believe that laughter exercises, with their safety, environmental friendliness, and low cost, could be a home-based initial treatment for people with symptomatic dry eye and minimal corneal surface damage,” they added.
Professor Nathan Congdon, co-investigator and co-author of the study, Ulverscroft Chair of Global Eye Health at Queen’s University Belfast, said: “My colleagues in China have done an excellent job demonstrating that simple, cost-free laughter exercises are just as effective as eye drops in combating dry eye. This condition can be severely debilitating, and its burden is only increasing as the global population ages”.
Laughter offers an excellent treatment for dry eye, especially in resource-limited areas where expensive eye drops may be hard to access. Further research will only expand the range of physical and mental health conditions where ‘laughter is the best medicine.
Source: Queen’s University Belfast
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