© Magnific
September 8, 2026
Marianne Waldenfels
Laughter as a therapy for breathlessness may sound unusual. But a new study suggests that structured laughter exercises could help people with COPD breathe more easily — possibly through a surprisingly simple mechanism.
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Laughter as a remedy for breathlessness? At first glance, that might sound far-fetched. Yet for people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in particular, targeted laughter therapy could actually help relieve symptoms. A randomized controlled study presented at this year's European Respiratory Society (ERS) Congress found that after eight weeks, participants experienced less breathing difficulty and reported an improved overall state of health.
What makes this especially interesting is that more may be behind the effect than laughter's well-known relaxing properties. When used in a structured way, laughter actually resembles a breathing exercise in several key respects.
In COPD, the airways are permanently narrowed and the lungs are damaged. Exhalation is particularly affected: the airways tend to collapse during breathing out, which means not all of the used air can escape. Air becomes trapped in the lungs — a phenomenon known as air trapping.
Alongside medication and physical training, specialized breathing techniques are therefore an important part of COPD management. One of these is pursed-lip breathing: the patient inhales through the nose and then exhales slowly through loosely closed lips. The slight back pressure this creates can help keep the airways open for longer during exhalation, allowing trapped air to escape more effectively.
The benefits of breathing techniques in COPD are already fairly well established. A systematic review of 73 randomized studies involving a total of 5,479 participants concluded that breathing exercises can reduce breathlessness and, in particular, improve health-related quality of life in people with severe respiratory diseases.
This is precisely the context for the new study. Goncagul Aldan and her team studied 63 people with COPD who were being treated at Ankara Bilkent City Hospital. The study design was also documented in a clinical trial registry.
Participants were randomly assigned to three groups of 21 people each. One group practiced the established pursed-lip breathing technique, a second underwent laughter therapy, and the third carried out no additional breathing exercises. All participants continued their regular COPD treatment throughout.
The laughter therapy involved a structured program that combined playful laughter exercises with rhythmic movements, vocal sounds, and conscious breathing. These were supplemented by phases of spontaneous, uninhibited laughter as well as relaxation exercises incorporating calm breathing and smiling.
After an initial in-person introduction, participants were asked to carry out the exercises at home three times a week, for 30 minutes per session, over a period of eight weeks.
By the end of the eight weeks, a notable difference had emerged: both the laughter therapy group and those who had practiced pursed-lip breathing experienced less breathlessness than the control group, and their overall health status had also improved.
According to the researchers, the reduction in breathlessness was still detectable even one month after the program ended. However, the amount of support patients needed in their daily lives had not changed.
The study therefore suggests that structured laughter exercises could potentially serve as a worthwhile complement to conventional breathing exercises in COPD.
Exactly how laughter therapy produces its effects has not yet been established, but the researchers suspect that several mechanisms may be at work.
Laughter disrupts the normal breathing rhythm and triggers repeated, sometimes more forceful exhalations. This could engage the respiratory muscles and encourage deeper breathing out. In COPD, that would be particularly relevant: the more effectively used air can be expelled from the lungs, the less air is left trapped inside.
A psychological effect may also play a role. Breathlessness can trigger anxiety, and anxiety in turn can affect breathing and intensify the sensation of air hunger. The researchers suspect that laughter therapy may also break into this cycle, partly through relaxation and the release of endorphins.
For now, however, these explanations remain hypotheses. Lead researcher Aldan emphasizes that the mechanisms behind laughter therapy's possible effects in COPD are still poorly understood, and that further investigation is needed.
These findings do not mean that people with COPD should simply laugh as often or as vigorously as possible. What matters is that the study examined a structured therapy in which laughter, breathing, and relaxation exercises were deliberately combined.
In fact, very intense or uncontrolled laughter can place additional strain on breathing in people with respiratory conditions. The program studied, by contrast, prepares the body for laughter through rhythmic exercises and controlled breathing.
The results are interesting, but should be interpreted with caution. With only 63 participants, this is a small study, and the findings have so far only been presented at the ERS Congress 2026; a full scientific publication of the results is not yet available.
The researchers therefore plan to investigate laughter therapy further in larger studies and in collaboration with international partners.
Pulmonologist Marc Miravitlles from Vall d'Hebron University Hospital in Barcelona, who was not involved in the study, describes it as small but well conducted. He notes that one particularly appealing aspect of laughter therapy is that it is simple, inexpensive, and can be done at home.
It is not, however, intended as a replacement for medical COPD treatment. Medication, exercise, vaccinations, and — depending on the clinical picture — pulmonary rehabilitation remain central pillars of care. Should the effect be confirmed in larger studies, structured laughter could in the future become an unusual yet accessible complement to existing treatment.
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