The Power of Tears: Health Benefits of Crying
Highlights:
- Crying aids detoxification, pain relief, and emotional balance
- It promotes social support and self-soothing, crucial for mental health
- For babies, crying facilitates lung adaptation and better sleep
Crying is a natural human response to a wide range of emotions, from sadness and grief to joy and relief. While we often associate crying with negative emotions, research has shown that crying can actually have a number of health benefits.
Benefits of crying
Detoxification:
There are three different types of tears: reflex tears, continuous tears, and emotional tears. Emotional tears contain stress hormones and other toxins that may be flushed out of the body through crying.
‘Did You Know?
Crying triggers the release of endorphins, natural painkillers 20 times more potent than morphine. #emotionalhealth #mentalwellbeing #medindia’
Self-Soothing :
Crying activates the parasympathetic nervous system, which helps the body to rest and digest. This can lead to feelings of calm and relaxation after a crying spell.
Pain Relief :
Crying releases endorphins, which are the body's natural painkillers. Endorphins can help to ease both physical and emotional pain.
Improved Mood :
Sobbing may help to improve mood by regulating the temperature of the brain. Cooler brain temperature is associated with feelings of pleasure and well-being.
Social Support :
Crying can be a way to signal to others that you are in need of support. This can help to strengthen your social support network during difficult times.
Grief Recovery :
Crying is an important part of the grieving process. It can help you to process and accept loss.
Emotional Balance :
Crying can help to restore emotional balance after experiencing strong emotions, such as joy, fear, or stress.
Benefits for Babies :
A baby's first cry helps their lungs to adapt to breathing air for the first time. Crying also helps to clear out fluids in the lungs, nose, and mouth. Crying may also help babies to sleep better.
How Much Crying is Normal?
The amount of crying that is normal varies from person to person and culture to culture. American women tend to cry more than American men, but averages vary considerably around the world.While crying is a normal and healthy response to emotions, excessive crying may be a sign of depression. If crying is interfering with your daily activities, it is important to talk to your doctor.
In summary, crying is a natural and healthy part of human emotion. It can have a number of benefits for both the body and mind. So next time you feel the urge to cry, don't hold back the tears. They may just be what you need to feel better.
Reference:
- Is crying good for you? - (https:www.health.harvard.edu/blog/is-crying-good-for-you-2021030122020)
Source: Medindia
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APA
Dr. Preethi Balasubramanian. (2024, June 21). The Power of Tears: Health Benefits of Crying. Medindia. Retrieved on Jun 29, 2024 from https://www.medindia.net/news/healthwatch/the-power-of-tears-health-benefits-of-crying-216127-1.htm.
MLA
Dr. Preethi Balasubramanian. "The Power of Tears: Health Benefits of Crying". Medindia. Jun 29, 2024. <https://www.medindia.net/news/healthwatch/the-power-of-tears-health-benefits-of-crying-216127-1.htm>.
Chicago
Dr. Preethi Balasubramanian. "The Power of Tears: Health Benefits of Crying". Medindia. https://www.medindia.net/news/healthwatch/the-power-of-tears-health-benefits-of-crying-216127-1.htm. (accessed Jun 29, 2024).
Harvard
Dr. Preethi Balasubramanian. 2024. The Power of Tears: Health Benefits of Crying. Medindia, viewed Jun 29, 2024, https://www.medindia.net/news/healthwatch/the-power-of-tears-health-benefits-of-crying-216127-1.htm.