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Laugh? Serious thing. Let’s find out what’s behind it

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Laugh?  Serious thing.  Let’s find out what’s behind it

Laugh? Something for serious people. It seems a contradiction in terms, but behind a laugh there really is a small part of human evolution. The professor explains it Carlo Bellieni, in the article that opens the Medicine pages of the new issue of Health, on newsstands on November 24th. An insight into the why of laughter that brings new elements within everyone’s reach. Starting from a study that Bellieni published in the journal New Ideas in Psychologyand who gave a disconcerting answer: laughter is for serious people.

To feel good with others (and with yourself) try to have a laugh

by Paola Emilia Cicero


Because the laughter starts

A behavior, that of laughing, which millennia of evolution have preserved in man. Because it is of fundamental importance: it is an alarm siren that goes off to warn those around us of something important, such as a cleared danger. Bellieni, in his article, delves into the subject by explaining the three secrets of humour: “Discovering an inconsistency, feeling with astonishment that this inconsistency clashes with life for its rigidity and coldness, finally discovering that this inconsistency is only apparent, that no one gets hurt.” The same process we see in cartoons.

“But if this is the mechanism of humor, why does that strange and bizarre sound that we call laughter snap in response? Why an animal sound instead of a verbal appreciation?” asks the author. The surprising answer: “Laughter is an alarm signal; indeed of all-clear. What alarm? That of having found in life something unusually cold, dead, repetitive, rigid, as happens in the joke I reported earlier or in cartoons. And then, in conclusion, laughter is one of the rhythmic phenomena of our body, selected by nature to relax us”.

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Intervista a Patch Adams

Patch Adams, doctor and clown: “The dumbest thing we can do? Not love ourselves”

There are those who have undergone therapy with laughter, with the establishment of the figure of clowns in the ward, which have been seen for years even if in recent times it is more rarely due to Covid. Clown therapy is truly a healing tool: it decreases the anxiety of children and their parents. And it instills a little good humor and confidence in those who, like patients in intensive care or the elderly, experience moments of anguish.

Smile therapy was introduced by a brilliant American doctor, Hunter “Patch” Adams, and at its basis lies the concept that the hospital should not be the cold place where patients are sorted between surgeries and specialists, but a real healing tool: entering the hospital itself must be pleasant and welcoming, starting from the architecture up to meeting with laughter. Salute interviewed Patch Adams, he spoke with him questioning these concepts. The video can be found on the site salute.eu.

“retreAT” starts, the project to bring advanced therapies to the patient

by Anna Lisa Bonfanceschi


Let’s swap genes

But the new edition of Salute also offers other insights. Like the one suggested by the cover story: “Gene Exchange”, which they worked on Valentina Arcovio e Fabio DiTodaro. The fact is that people who live with a rare disease know their path collides with evidence: the small number of cases, given that these are less studied diseases and of reduced social interest.

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But if previously there was talk of the absence of therapies, today the scenario has changed, between lights and shadows: for some of these patients the treatments have arrived, however the risk looms that they will soon no longer be available. A delicate situation, which Francesca Pasinelligeneral manager of the Telethon Foundation (which has been supporting scientific research of excellence for the study and treatment of genetic diseases for over 30 years) brought to the attention of the Health Festival held in Rome from 20 to 22 October last. “We can’t leave these patients behind just because they have such rare diseases,” he says.

So what to do?

Given the situation, there are ways to improve it. Pasinelli herself indicates them: “The proposal is that the government enhances the role of the University in the development of drugs. Universities need to count on production lines similar to those of companies, capable of guaranteeing quality standards with which to carry out all “Within the academy, at least the first two phases of a clinical trial. As for the regulatory bodies, it is time to review the reimbursement mechanisms for these drugs”.

Meanwhile, Telethon is working to bear the marketing costs of Strimvelis, one of the gene therapies available thanks to the research it has supported on its own. It also aims to set up an ad hoc foundation, dedicated to the distribution of the drug: “It will be an autonomous entity – concludes Pasinelli -, which will receive the therapies developed by us under license from Telethon”.

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Autumn opens the door to three viruses: the triplendemic is on its way

by Donatella Zorzetto


The influence is felt

Finally the flu. Letizia Gabaglio he took stock of the situation, interviewing Michael Conversano, president of HappyAgeing, the Italian Alliance for Healthy Aging, and director of the Prevention Department of the Asl of Taranto. Social distancing, smart working, the drastic drop in travel and movements have also prevented viruses, which often move thanks to their human hosts, from traveling around the world.

So in the coming weeks, when we meet the four flu viruses that according to WHO will circulate the most, we will be more susceptible. “It is true that these are pathogens that change every year, but only slightly, and therefore exposure in previous years protects us, even if only partially,” explains Conversano. This is why, according to the expert, it is advisable to continue to wear a mask in crowded places, to wash your hands often and to stay at home if you have fever or flu symptoms. Precautions and behaviors that apply especially to fragile people, i.e. those who have a less robust immune system. The elderly especially.

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