Is Swearing Good for Your Health?
If you are like me, it takes great effort to control the slew of expletives that seem to stream from my mouth when stubbing my toe on the corner of the bed or hitting my elbow on the corner of the kitchen wall. If you tend to verbally “let it fly” when hitting your funny bone, it may turn out that you are benefitting your health. Some new research done out of a UK University has found that using swear words after sustaining injury can help reduce the pain.
A study at Keele University School of Psychology used a group of students to test the theory to explore the link between swearing and pain tolerance. The students were asked to thrust their hands into freezing cold ice water (simulating pain) and use a swear word of their choosing as a reaction to the icy water. At the second stage of the study, the same group where then asked to re-insert their hands into the same tub of water (at the same freezing temperature) only this time reacting with non-swear words that described a simple dining room table. The outcome was that the student were able to withstand more time submersed in the freezing water when swearing .
The researchers couldn’t point out exactly how swearing increased the pain tolerance of the students but theorize that swearing may trigger a “fight or flight” response. In addition, they did conclude that the heart rates of the test group were accelerated indicating a possible increase in aggression. This type of response would demonstrate a mental state that would downplay weakness and create a false state of machismo (helping the group tolerate more pain).
So the next time you get your fingers caught in the car door or trip taking the groceries out of the car, let the four-letter words fly as it may help you deal with the pain (just make sure the kids are outside of ear-shot).