The Power of a SMILE

Saw this on Reader's Digest September 2007 edition "The Power of a Smile - by Anne Mullens" & thought that it's really good.

It's 7am, and Susan Jenks would love more sleep, but she can hear her 5-month-old son, Angus, rousing in the next room. "I'm hardly able to drag myself out of bed," says this mother, who, with both an infant and an older son aged two, is no stranger to fatigue. "But when I look into his cot, and he gives me a big smile, it fills me with joy - and then everything is fine." Such is the power of a simple smile.

Studies have found that if a parent responds to a baby's smile with an expressionless face, the infant gets upset. "This indicates how important the caregiver's smile is for the infant," Infants of depressed mothers also show fewer signs of happiness and smile less often than infants of non-depressed mothers.

Keltner notes that while some people are born with generally happier temperaments, which set them up for success, others can become happier by being taught how to cultivate a genuine smile.

"In the happiness literature," the greatest association with happiness is connection to others. Teaching smiling is important becuase it helps us connect.

Putting on a happy face not only helps us make friends, it translates into altered brain chemistry that makes us feel better.

A smile is a powerful part of our conversation capability. If you can't smile, you are very limited in your ability to pass on information and relate to other people. (Dr Ralph Manktelow)