Business & Money

Giggles hold down your job and your health

Laughing woman Laughter really is the best medicine, according to new findings from a survey by Maltesers, but some of us are forgetting how.

The chocolate giant revealed that our giggle ability declines rapidly with age: children giggle on average 400 times a day, however, close to a third (28%) of UK adults haven't giggled in over a week.

People who laugh regularly have stronger immune systems, lower blood pressure and can deal with the stresses and strains of everyday life more effectively.

Furthermore, chuckling is so good for us that close to half (47%) of Brits believe that people who giggle more take less days off sick.

However it isn't just general wellbeing that is aided by laughter. People who giggle are more creative and productive at work, according to over half of those surveyed.

Furthermore, laughing is more than a career boost - more than six in 10 say giggling makes someone more attractive, with 44% of men finding women who can't contain their laughter to be attractive.

More than eight in 10 people surveyed said chuckling makes them feel happy and half feel stress-free after a good dose of the giggles.

Health psychologist, David Moxon, recommends a daily dose of at least 30 giggles to promote optimum health, performance at work and successful relationships.

David Moxon's top tips for getting the giggles are:

Spend time with other gigglers - chortling is very contagious
Stop to enjoy light-hearted moments throughout the day. If things are getting you down, try to look for humour in everyday situations
Smile more - this can often lead to giggles and will help those around you feel happier
Visit friends and family - the number one snigger trigger in this study

Pull the other one
Funny excuses for pulling a sick day.

A Maltesers spokesperson, said: "Research shows that children laugh on average over 400 times a day, however, this declines to an average of just 15 times a day for UK adults.

"To counteract the nation's giggle gap, Maltesers has launched a campaign for a daily giggle to help UK adults reach the recommended 30 giggles a day."