Science says acting like a baby is a natural painkiller

Science says acting like a baby is a natural painkillerScience says acting like a baby is a natural painkillerMany parents have used the phrase, If youre going to act like a baby, Illtreat you like one, and science suggests that that actually might be the key tokilling pain. They may not be the toughest types of people, but theres evidence that babies might have the best strategies for managing pain and discomfort.Crying, whining, and other audible expressions of anguish not only help babies call for help, but also make people of any age feel better. So if your back hurts, the following studies make a scientific case for being a baby about it.Follow Ladders on FlipboardFollow Ladders magazines on Flipboard covering Happiness, Productivity, Job Satisfaction, Neuroscience, and moraSaying ow is a natural painkillerWhen researchers submerged 56 adults hands in ice water, they found that participants were able to tolerate the pain much longer if they vocalized it. A simple vocal act such as saying ow helps individuals cope with pain. Participants tolerated a noxious stimulus longer when vocalizing than when being silent, study authors wrote inThe Journal of Pain. Scientists suspect that the results arent limited to the word ow or buckets of ice water, but that theres something about a person broadcasting their pain that makes it more tolerable.Making other noises of distress helps, tooAudible sounds might help to reduce pain because in order to make noises people need to use muscles that activate the parasympathetic nervous system. Muscles that raise the lower ribs and help to produce sound might also be instrumental in moderating pain, research suggests. Other studies indicate that deep breathing can also activate these muscles in order to make aches and pains more manageable. Still, its so much more fun to scream.Crying like a baby makes everyone feel even betterLike screaming and yelling, crying has been found to stimulate the nervous system in similar ways, whic h helps people relax. Acting like a baby - by sobbing - comes with added scientific benefits, as well. Crying releases endorphins while helping people to shed harmful stress hormones. Finally, tears lubricate the eyes so people can actually binnensee more clearly when the emotional rain is gone. Women cry aboutfive times morethan men a year,on average, andfor about twice as long, but it might not be because theyre sad guys might just be missing out.Swearing can age this up a littleIf screaming, crying, and saying ow feel too juvenile, dads can achieve similar pain management effects with the help of their favorite expletives. Anotherexperimentdemonstrated that swearing helped people keep their hands submerged in ice water, but not just because they were making noise Scientists suspect that swearing, specifically, made people feel more aggressive, and aggression has been linked with higher pain tolerances. Thats why swearing is a necessary part of stepping on a Lego.Being a baby ma kes people feel taken care ofWhether people opt to scream, cry, or swear, letting people know that theyre in pain is an important primitive response thats meant to signal the need for help. Human beings start doing this as newborns and research shows that how caretakers respond has a direct effect on how their brains develop. As they grow up, such audible signals that theyre hurt might create a conditioned response or a placebo effect that helps soothe pain whether people attend to it or not. So stop suffering in silence and go ahead and act like a baby. At least youll be a happy one.This article originally appeared on Fatherly.You might also enjoyNew neuroscience reveals 4 rituals that will make you happyStrangers know your social class in the first seven words you say, study finds10 lessons from Benjamin Franklins daily schedule that will double your productivityThe worst mistakes you can make in an interview, according to 12 CEOs10 habits of mentally strong people