title: Laughter education and the psycho-physical effects: introduction of smile-sun method.
abstract: With the aim of reducing cases of bully and suicide, 34 core laughter producers and 179 laughter producers were educated using Smile-Sun Messages in Aomori Prefecture. The purpose of this paper is to explore the key to spontaneous laughter for further application to healthcare settings.
  
  
  METHODS
  Andragogy is the backbone idea. The author modified as seven tools such as sharing the objective, learning by heart, concentration, focusing on points, repetition, humor and evaluation. The contents of Smile-Sun Messages are as follows: 1. I love myself, 2. I love to make you happy, 3. I sympathize, 4. "Let's think of it this way", 5. Talk in P-N-P, 6. "I" message with eye-contact and love and 7. Thanks for all. There is no curriculum on how to laugh.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Participants gained self confidence by having their good points praised by others. Their depression decreased. Spontaneous laughter arose from participants. They all improved physically in terms of appearance, posture and attitude. There are some reports of better fingering in piano playing in 2 ladies, pain relief in a patient with cancer and improved walking without using a stick for 2 ladies with rheumatoid arthritis and a limp due to an unknown cause.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Spontaneous laughter can be drawn when self-confidence is recognized. With Smile-Sun Messages in hospitals and healing environments, spontaneous laughter can be drawn from patients which will decrease their depression and help them recover rapidly from their illness.
authors.affiliation: Nippon Medical School.
authors.forename: Kazue
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Takayanagi
mesh_terms: D004493:Education; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D007845:Laughter / Q000502:physiology* / Q000523:psychology*; D027641:Laughter Therapy; D016730:Program Development