WATCHING A comedy film and listening to classical music are set to become the latest prescription for patients with heart disease, doctors at a major medical conference have been told.
Dr Michael Miller, professor of medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, said watching a film or a sitcom that produces laughter has a positive effect on cardiovascular function and may be as beneficial as going for a run. However, the laughter must be intense – “more of a deep belly laugh”, Dr Miller said – and needs to last for about 15 seconds to be effective.
He told a symposium entitled Don't Worry, Be Happyat the European Society of Cardiology Congress that laughter exerts its benefits through the release of endorphins by the brain which in turn leads to the release of nitric oxide by the lining of blood vessels. Nitric oxide is known to dilate blood vessels, reduce inflammation and help prevent cholesterol being deposited in arteries.
He and his colleagues used ultrasound to measure the diameter of arteries in healthy men and women who, on one day watched clips of comedy films, while on another day viewed stressful sequences from Saving Private Ryan. The results showed that blood flow improved by about 20 per cent in those watching a humorous film but decreased by over a third in those watching a stressful excerpt.
Previously the same researchers compared some 150 patients with heart disease with 150 controls and found that people with heart disease had a 40 per cent reduction in their ability to find humour in different situations.
“The endothelium is the first line in developing atherosclerosis or hardening of the arteries, so it is very possible that laughing on a regular basis may be useful to incorporate as part of an overall healthy lifestyle to prevent heart disease. In other words, eat your veggies, exercise and get a good belly laugh every day,” said Dr Miller.
Meanwhile, a German cardiologist who is also an organist told the same symposium that, in comparison to listening to Bach, heavy metal music has a “potential to be dangerous”.
Dr Hans Joachim Trappe told delegates that listening to classical music has the potential to decrease blood pressure and heart rate. He and his colleagues are undertaking research on healthy volunteers to see if there are differences in blood pressure, respiratory rate and in levels of the stress hormone cortisol when exposed to Bach, a heavy metal group and controlled periods of silence.
“Heavy metal encourages rage, disappointment and aggressive behaviour while causing both heart rate and blood pressure to increase,” he said. Dr Trappe is now planning a study titled “Bach or Beta-Blockers” in which people with high blood pressure will be randomly assigned to treatment with either beta- blocking drugs or classical music.