I think we can all agree that there hasn’t been much to laugh about lately but do you know that laughing has several health benefits? A study by The International Journal of Obesity found that 15 minutes of laughter a day burns between 10 and 40 calories depending upon a person’s weight and the intensity of the laughter. That equates to between 1lb and 4lb a year. At this rate though you would have to laugh solidly for about four hours to burn off a Mars Bar so the Laughing Diet might take a while to catch on. Laughter also encourages the chest to rise rapidly which gives the muscles in the area a little work out too. You can watch a comedy smug in the knowledge that you are losing weight and having a workout at the same time.  Having a laugh with your friends can also helps with menopause symptoms by decreasing stress hormones, increasing immune cells and producing endorphins, – otherwise known as the happy chemicals, added to this it increases the functions of blood vessels which is very good for your heart.

Here’s a book and a film which might make you laugh out loud, for at least 100 calories!

Book   Bird Brain by Guy Kennaway  Bird Brain: Amazon.co.uk: Kennaway, Guy: 9780099563471: Books A man nicknamed Banger because of the great pride and pleasure he takes in shooting birds, is shot and reincarnated as a pheasant. What follows is a hilarious whodunnit featuring a cast of acutely drawn characters including humans and talking (to each other) animals and of course Banger who has to adapt to life on the other side of the barrel of a shotgun. It’s laugh out loud funny and totally unputdownable.

Film Spy with Melissa McCarthy playing Susan Cooper, an unassuming, deskbound CIA analyst, and the unsung hero behind the Agency’s most dangerous missions. When her partner (Jude Law) falls off the grid and another top agent (Jason Statham) is compromised, she volunteers to go undercover to infiltrate the world of a deadly arms dealer and prevent a global disaster. It’s crude, brash and hysterically funny.

I’ll have what she’s had.