Unlock happiness, healing through smile: Why it's more than just a facial expression

SIMPLE YET PROFOUND: One of the simplest yet profound actions we can undertake daily is to smile. Studies show that a simple smile triggers the release of three beneficial hormones – dopamine, endorphins, and serotonin. These hormones act as signals to the body — which fosters feelings of happiness and well-being.

HEALTH BENEFITS OF SMILING: Beyond its psychological and social advantages, smiling offers numerous health benefits. One benefit: stress reduction. Smiling helps the body naturally release stress and anxiety. By reducing stress-induced hormones in the bloodstream, smiling acts as a natural remedy, preventing adrenal fatigue.

LONG-TERM STUDY: Long-term studies extending back to the 1960s even suggest a correlation between smiling and increased longevity, with individuals captured smiling in school annuals demonstrating a longer lifespan compared to their frowning counterparts.

GOING BEYOND THE SURFACE: It turns out the psychological impact of smiling goes beyond the surface. Smiling engages a more extensive network of muscles compared to frowning. The act of smiling involves muscles around the eye sockets, creating an authentic and warm expression. In contrast, frowning utilises fewer muscles, highlighting the intricate connection between facial expressions and emotional well-being. Photo shows Dubai resident Maria Eldin.

BEYOND FACIAL EXPRESSION: Smiles not only work as a catalyst for connection, but helps achieve social harmony. Smiling transcends a mere facial expression, and delves into the intricate workings of the mind and body. It is scientifically proven to stimulate the brain's reward mechanism more effectively than chocolate, so it’s is a powerful tool for inducing happiness.

INHERENT: The act of smiling appears ingrained in human nature, as noted by renowned naturalist Charles Darwin. His seminal work, "The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals," underscores the universality of facial expressions, attributing them to products of human evolution rather than cultural idiosyncrasies. Expression researcher Jeffrey Cohn affirms that the zygomatic major — the facial muscle responsible for smiling — is evolutionarily embedded in all humans, suggesting an inborn motor routine associated with smiling.

SMILING REDUCES STRESS: Stress and anxiety can be ongoing challenges, but smiling more often helps the mind and body release stress naturally. Smiling enhances positive emotions, in addition to social and psychological advantages. Everyone has both positive and negative emotions swimming around in their mind. When you choose to smile and laugh often, you tap into your positive emotions.Smiling often helps you appear more approachable. Others will naturally feel drawn to you when you smile.

400X PER DAY: Observing children, who naturally exude joy through laughter, provides a compelling example. Children laugh an average of 400 times a day, whereas adults, even those considered happy, manage only 40 to 50 smiles a day. 


FROM NEWBORNS TO ADULTHOOD: Studies examining newborns shed light on the early emergence of smiling behaviours. Even at 10 months, infants exhibit a nuanced understanding of facial expressions, offering false smiles to strangers while reserving genuine “Duchenne smiles” for their mothers. A Duchenne smile is the one that reaches your eyes, making the corners wrinkle up.

COMPLEXITIES OF SMILING: Research led by Yale psychologist Marianne LaFrance delves into the intricate factors contributing to gender disparities in smiling. The analysis, encompassing 162 studies and over 100,000 participants, identifies gender norms, situational constraints, and emotional climates as pivotal moderators affecting the grin gap between men and women. The study concludes that smiling is a "highly contingent social display," influenced by contextual factors.

BEYOND EXPRESSION: Recent evidence suggests that smiles may function as indicators of altruistic intentions. Observing test participants engaged in sharing activities, researchers noted increased Duchenne smiles during altruistic scenarios. This aligns with the notion that genuine smiles serve as reliable signals of cooperative and altruistic inclinations.



ENHANCING ATTRACTIVENESS: Scientific exploration into the allure of smiles reveals that viewing attractive faces, especially those adorned with genuine smiles, activates the brain's “orbitofrontal cortex”, a region of the brain involved in the processing, receiving and integrating inputs from all senses — taste, smell, somatosensory, auditory and visual, as well as visceral sensory and visceral. This region responds more robustly to smiling faces.

HARMONY: Achieving an authentic smile involves harmonising both sets of muscles, accompanied by a sense of relaxation when genuinely smiling. Once you practice your smiling skills, you should find that you're healthier, happier, and more relaxed. Your smiling muscles connect directly to your nervous system and brain, so smiling can improve your mood.

PROFESSIONAL SETTING: Moreover, frequent smiling taps into positive emotions, promoting an overall sense of well-being. Appearing more approachable and desirable in personal and professional settings becomes an additional perk of smiling regularly. 


WARMTH: Genuine smiles radiate warmth and friendliness. Making a conscious choice to adopt a genuine smile can be transformative, especially in challenging situations.

AUTHENTIC SMILING: Learning the art of authentic smiling involves introspection and visualisation. Imagining oneself as a smiling, happy individual and associating smiles with wellness, love, and acceptance are crucial steps. Practice in front of a mirror, ensuring engagement of the eye socket muscles for sincerity and the mouth muscles for a social smile.

PRACTISE YOUR SMILING SKILLS: If you find it a challenge to smile, consider reminiscing about a person or event that brought you happiness or joy. Important: reflecting on these positive memories just before entering a social setting can help you ease into a genuinely happy state. This will encourage a natural smile. And why not practise smiling in front of a mirror? A sincere smile engages the muscles around your eyes, conveying authenticity, and those at the corners of your mouth, forming a social smile.

SMILE OFFERS INSIGHTS INTO LONGEVITY: Building on the emotional outcomes, a study conducted by researchers at Wayne State University focus to a biological dimension of infectious smile: longevity. Rating the smiles of professional baseball players from a 1952 yearbook, the study linked smile intensity to survival rates. Remarkably, Duchenne smiles in yearbook photos were associated with a remarkable 50 per cent lower likelihood of mortality, explaining 35 per cent of the variability in survival. This novel perspective establishes smiles as potential indicators of a longer, healthier life.

JOURNEY TO WELL-BEING: It’s been said that the journey to well-being and happiness begins with a smile. As we consciously choose to embrace genuine smiles, our physical and mental health reap the rewards. So, let's embark on this journey of transformation, one authentic smile at a time. 


PEACE BEGINS WITH A SMILE: On a social level, a genuine smile can bridge gaps and contribute to peaceful coexistence. A simple smile, even when facing strangers or adversaries, has the potential to deter harm initially. The renowned Mother Teresa encapsulated this connection by asserting, "Peace begins with a smile," emphasising the role of smiling in fostering relationships and building bridges. There’s an immense power of the smiling peace. A hymn goes: “Let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with me.”