HUMOR THERAPY IS A (GOOD) JOKE.

HUMOR THERAPY IS A (GOOD) JOKE. George Burns famously deadpanned, “When I was a boy, the Dead Sea was only sick.”  And Henny Youngman joked, “I’m so old that when I order a three-minute egg, they make me pay up front.” Self-deprecation is funny … and healthy, too.

The most recent validation of laughter being the best medicine comes from the University of South Wales in Australia. In 36 Australian residential care communities, therapists with comedy and improvisation training shared 12 weeks of playful interactions with residents. The results were a 20 percent reduction in agitated behavior among residents with dementia. The humor therapy helped reduce “physical and verbal aggression, wandering, screaming, and repetitive behaviors and questions,” according to the research team. And, researchers note, the happiness and positive behavior remained lower through the 26-week follow up.

So smile when someone tells you, “You’re so old your blood type was discontinued.” You may just get the last laugh.