Academic Journal
Healing with laughter: the therapeutic power of laughter yoga in pediatric health - a systematic review.
| Τίτλος: | Healing with laughter: the therapeutic power of laughter yoga in pediatric health - a systematic review. |
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| Συγγραφείς: | Dur Ş; Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Pediatric Nursing, İzmir Demokrasi University, İzmir, Türkiye., Erkin Ö; Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Public Health Nursing, İzmir Demokrasi University, İzmir, Türkiye. ozum.erkin@idu.edu.tr.; Southern California University of Health Sciences, Amber Valley, Whittier, CA, 16200, United States of America. ozum.erkin@idu.edu.tr., Çetin RC; Institute of Health Sciences, Department of Public Health Nursing, Izmir Demokrasi University, İzmir, Türkiye. |
| Πηγή: | BMC pediatrics [BMC Pediatr] 2026 Jan 03; Vol. 26 (1), pp. 2. Date of Electronic Publication: 2026 Jan 03. |
| Τύπος έκδοσης: | Journal Article; Systematic Review |
| Γλώσσα: | English |
| Στοιχεία περιοδικού: | Publisher: BioMed Central Country of Publication: England NLM ID: 100967804 Publication Model: Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1471-2431 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 14712431 NLM ISO Abbreviation: BMC Pediatr Subsets: MEDLINE |
| Imprint Name(s): | Original Publication: London : BioMed Central, [2001- |
| Ιατρικοί όροι (MeSH): | Laughter Therapy*/methods , Stress, Psychological*/therapy , Yoga* , Laughter* , Child Health*, Anxiety/therapy ; Humans ; Child ; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic |
| Περίληψη: | Background: Laughter yoga is a non-pharmacological and non-invasive therapeutic approach that integrates voluntary laughter with controlled breathing exercises. This systematic review aimed to evaluate research investigating the impact of laughter yoga on children's health outcomes. Methods: This systematic review included studies with randomized controlled trial (RCT) and quasi-experimental designs, adhering to the PRISMA guidelines. This systematic review, conducted between December 18, 2023, and October 31, 2024, was guided by the PRISMA guidelines and a predefined protocol based on the PICOS-based protocol. Eligible studies included randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and quasi-experimental designs. A comprehensive literature search was conducted in Google Scholar, Medline/PubMed, Cochrane Library, Science Direct, CINAHL Complete, and OVID databases. Study selection was based on the PICOS framework, and methodological quality was assessed using the Joanna Briggs Institute-Meta Analysis Statistical Assessment and Review Instrument (JBI-MAStARI). Based on the inclusion criteria, six studies were incorporated into the review. Results: The total sample across the included studies was 305 participants, with 66% of the studies involving at least 50 participants. Findings indicated that laughter yoga contributed to a reduction in anxiety and stress levels in children (p < 0.05), while no statistically significant effect was observed on depression scores (p > 0.05). Although no substantial improvement in self-esteem was reported, positive changes in self-concept were noted. Furthermore, laughter yoga was associated with an increase in salivary IgA levels (p < 0.01), whereas no significant influence on cortisol levels was found (p > 0.05). Additionally, the intervention was reported to alleviate pain, fatigue, and burnout while enhancing hope and overall happiness. Conclusions: Study results showed that laughter yoga promoted the increase in happiness and self-concept in children and improved their ability to cope with stress. It also provided a physiological improvement by positively affecting pain and fatigue. In light of these results, it is recommended that laughter yoga be used more widely in children's daily lives and clinical practices. (© 2025. The Author(s).) |
| Competing Interests: | Declarations: There is no risk of harm to researchers in the studies included in the systematic review, and no financial support has been received for the review. PICOS was used for inclusion and exclusion criteria and PRISMA models were used for evaluation and synthesis. The risk of bias was assessed using the Cochrane Collaboration's Risk of Bias Tool. Ethics approval and consent to participate : Not Applicable. Consent for publication: Not applicable. Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests. |
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| Contributed Indexing: | Keywords: Child health; Complementary therapies; Laughter; Laughter therapy; Laughter yoga |
| Entry Date(s): | Date Created: 20260104 Date Completed: 20260104 Latest Revision: 20260602 |
| Update Code: | 20260602 |
| PubMed Central ID: | PMC12764003 |
| DOI: | 10.1186/s12887-025-06151-0 |
| PMID: | 41485062 |
| Βάση Δεδομένων: | MEDLINE |
| ISSN: | 1471-2431 |
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| DOI: | 10.1186/s12887-025-06151-0 |