BBC 6 minute English-Laughter is bad for you

Transcript of the podcast

NB: This is not a word – for – word transcript

Finn: Hello and welcome to 6 Minute English with me, Finn

Neil: And me, Neil

Finn: Neil, I’m going to tell you a joke

Neil: OK, come on

Finn: Which part of learning the English language are boxers best at

Neil: Which part of English are boxers best at? I don’t know

Finn: Punch-uation: punctuation

Neil: That’s actually quite funny

Finn: Do you really think so

Neil: I do, yes

Finn: Well, I’m glad I made you laugh. But you might not thank me for it after the programme

Neil: Why’s that

Finn: Because a paper published by the British Medical Journal says that laughter is not always the best medicine, and sometimes, it can actually be harmful

Neil: Well, in that case I definitely won’t be laughing at your jokes any more! And, to be honest, it wasn’t funny anyway

Finn: Anyway, today we’ll be exploring the connection between laughter and health, and looking at some health-related vocabulary. But before we get into the story, Neil: a question. You’re a parent. At what age do babies begin to laugh? Is it

a) 0-3 months

b) 3-6 months

c) 6-8 months

Neil: Right I’m pretty sure, unless my memory is very bad, that it’s a) 0-3 months

Finn: OK, well, we will find out if you’re right at the end of the programme. OK, so laughter, as I said, is generally thought of as a good thing. There’s a phrase I said earlier which is: laughter is the best medicine

Neil: Yes, and talking of medicine, there are many medical studies which examine the benefits of laughter – it reduces stress, it’s good for your heart, things like that. But now you’re telling me it can have some negative effects

Finn: Well, why don’t we listen to Professor Robin Ferner, who is one of the authors of the research paper. How many negative effects of laughter does he mention

Robin Ferner, University of Birmingham

We found people with heart rhythm disturbance which had stopped their heart, we found people who had fainted, we found people whose gullets had burst, we found people who’d dislocated their jaws or burst their lungs

Neil: Quite a few! It seems laughing can be no laughing matter

Finn: Indeed – he mentions five problems caused by laughter, including heart rhythm disturbance, fainting, burst gullets, dislocated jaws and even burst lungs

Neil: Some of those sound quite nasty. Fainting is when you lose consciousness and pass out; and your gullet is the tube through which food passes from the mouth to the stomach, so a burst gullet would be horrible

Finn: I think it would be very bad! We also heard about burst lungs – lungs are the organs in your chest that you use to breathe. And – I think you’d have to be laughing very hard to do this – to get a dislocated jaw. To dislocate something is to move it out of its normal place or position, so you dis-locate it. A dislocated jaw – ouch

Neil: Well, thankfully there is no danger of dislocated jaws with your jokes Finn

Finn: OK! Well, in fact, these five dangers are only some that were mentioned in the study

Neil: But surely, there must have been some positive findings

Finn: Yes, let’s listen to Professor Robin Ferner again – which health benefit does he mention

Robin Ferner, University of Birmingham

You actually use energy when you laugh, you move your diaphragm, you expand your lungs, and both those things can be helpful. For example, it’s said that laughing for quarter of an hour will burn up 40 kcal, and if you laughed all day you’d use up about 2,000 calories

Finn: That’s more like it! Laughing can help you lose weight, because you use energy when you laugh

Neil: In fact, quite a lot of energy: if you laughed all day you’d use 2,000 calories, which is what most people consume in a day

Finn: He also thinks laughing makes people feel better, and it can reduce the chance of having a heart attack

Neil: So overall – what’s the story – laughing: good or bad

Finn: Well, he says for most people, most of the time, laughing is a great thing. And well, that’s good, because I like to laugh, don’t you Neil

Neil: Oh yes I do

Finn: Earlier I asked you Neil, at what age do babies begin to laugh? Was it 0-3 months, 3-6 months or 6-8 months

Neil: And I said 0-3 months

Finn: Well, Neil, the answer was in fact b) 3-6 months. A little bit later! And 0-3 months, which was your answer, Neil, is when babies smile for the first time

Neil: Well, you had the last laugh there Finn

Finn: Very good – and if you have the last laugh it means you’re successful in the end. Right, that’s it for this programme. Do log on to bbclearningenglish.com for more 6 Minute English. Goodbye

Neil: Bye