“The smile is the shortest distance between two persons.”
Victor Borge.
The act of smiling has intrigued scientists over the ages. The best-known earlier study in this regard was a French study on smiling, whose findings were published in 1862. The French anatomist Guillaume Duchenne studied emotional expression by stimulating various facial muscles with electrical currents. This technique was so painful that he probably ran out of volunteers, as he started performing some of his tests on the severed heads of executed criminals!
The anatomy of a smile involves two sets of muscles waiting readily and are roused into action when the emotional center of the brain initiates a smile. The zygomatic major muscles reside in the cheeks and tugs the lips upward, while the orbicularis oculi, that encircles the eye sockets, squeezes the outside corners of the eyes into the shape of a crow’s foot.
While other muscles can simulate a smile, only the zygomatic major and orbicularis oculi produce a genuine expression of positive emotion. This genuine expression of positive emotion is known amongst psychologists as the “Duchenne smile”.
When someone receives such an authentic smile that reaches the eyes, he or she usually respond by smiling back. In addition to brightening up someone else’s day, it is scientifically proven that your smile also brightens your own mood.
Research over the years showed that smiling is much more than a simple, mundane act that occurs when one is happy or pleased, as it has profound physiological and psychological impacts in the brain.
Smiling can be quite complex. While a genuine beaming smile may reflect joy or happiness, there are other types of smiles that do not reflect enjoyment, but some other emotions such as grief or embarrassment, or even a cheap grin of deceit.
Your body’s reactions to smiling:
A smile usually starts in our senses, such as feeling the pressure of someone’s hand in yours, or seeing an old friend, or hearing pleasant words. This emotional data travels to the brain and excites the amygdala, considered the emotional center of the brain, before travelling to and activating the “smile” muscles in the face.
When you smile, the brain releases a number of chemicals, such as tiny molecules called neuropeptides, the neurotransmitters dopamine, serotonin, as well as endorphins and cortisol. These positive alterations in hormonal balance and neurotransmitter levels benefit mood enhancement.
- Neuropeptides are the largest and most diverse class of signaling molecules in the brain and are released by neurons as neurotransmitters or neurohormones. Neuropeptides are, amongst others, involved in pain perception and the release of oxytocin – the “love” hormone.
- Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that activates the reward center in the brain and plays a major role in feelings of pleasure and reward. Elevated levels increase pleasure and motivation.
- Serotonin is a neurotransmitter involved in the regulation of mood. Elevated levels can boost emotional wellbeing and mood.
- Endorphins are chemicals (hormones) the brain releases when pain or stress occurs. They are also released during pleasurable activities such as exercise, eating, and even during sex. Endorphins help to relieve pain, reduce stress, and improve one’s sense of well-being through their involvement in the brain’s reward system.
- Cortisol is the body’s stress hormone and smiling can reduce cortisol levels, which can contribute to reduced stress and improved mood.
Studies have shown that even posing a smile can brighten one’s mood and makes a compelling argument that human emotions are deemed to be linked to muscle movements or other physical sensations. Most people communicate their feelings through their facial expressions. Facial expressions not only express emotions, but also provide feedback to the brain, which influences our emotions. Changing one’s facial expressions can change the way we feel.
Conclusion:
Facial muscles for smiling are found on all humans and the motor routine involved in smiling is probably inborn. Ultrasound scans have shown that unborn babies in the womb smile or grimace when their mothers eat certain foods, for example a smile when she eats carrots and a grimace when she eats greens, such as kale. Studies have shown that even three-month-old infants already react to changes in their mother’s facial expressions.
Faking a smile until you make it real is a sure way to improve your mood. There could be real advantages to smiling more often than you normally do, your brain will certainly thank you for that.
“Smile, and the world smiles with you!”
References:
Turn that frown upside down: The mood-boosting benefits of smiling. Published 11 August 2023. Blog by Dr David Perlmutter. (www.drperlmutter.com)
Global collaboration led by Stanford researcher shows that a posed smile can improve your mood. Published 20 October 2022. Stanford News. Stanford Medical School. (www.news.stanford.edu)
Is faking a smile enough to improve your mood? Published 25 October 2022. MedicalNewsToday. (www.medicalnewstoday.com)
Forcing a smile can improve your mood, study suggests. Published online and updated 31 August 2021. Verywellmind. (www.verywellmind.com)
The psychological study of smiling. Published 11 February 2011. Association for Psychological Science. (www.psychologicalscience.org)
Why you need to smile more. Published online. NeuroNation. Germany. (www.neuronation.com)
Unborn babies smile and grimace when mothers eat certain foods. Published 22 September 2022. The National. (Newsletter in the Middle East.) (www.thenationalnews.com)
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