The (UK) Times offered an interesting overview about the lingering debate that still rages on among conventional medical experts regarding the link -- both positive and negative -- between emotions and health.
It begins by looking at the controversy over examining "happiness" scientifically at all, given the attitude that happiness is in some ways the trivial pursuit of a shallow generation. The article examines the school of thought that trying to increase one's own happiness is in some ways selfish while much of the world faces suffering and premature death.
However, research has shown, in well over 3,000 papers on the subject, that happier people are often healthier, more successful, harder-working, caring, and socially engaged. Misery, on the other hand, can make people self-obsessed and inactive.
Also looked at in the article are the questions of what happiness is in the first place, why negative emotions are so deeply ingrained in the human psyche, the biology of emotions, and the debate over the "positive feelings" school of psychology and psychotherapy.
The link between emotions and health is well established, and the author of this article certainly cites enough evidence to make a convincing case, even if you remain skeptical about the worth of happiness.
But the bulk of this piece isn't on that subject; what it's really examining is the question of whether time and money should be spent on the research of positive emotions, or whether that is ultimately a trivial pursuit.
In some ways, it's hard for me to imagine most of us believe the pursuit of happiness and optimal health could be perceived as anything but trivial, particularly when life throws us an unexpected curve ball, like losing your home to a natural disaster or losing a job. Many believe that there are more important things to research than happiness.
However, the research shows, and I believe, that happier people are also both healthier and more productive.
If you can become happier you will help build a better world. If you can improve your ability to address stresses and negative emotions, you're more likely to be able to do the things that no one would claim are trivial.
And building positive emotions through humor also is one of the most natural things you can do to broaden your view of this wonderful world in which we live.
In my opinion, happiness isn't so much something you strive for but a spontaneous natural result of pursuing your God-given mission in life--and following a natural lifestyle that allows the body God gave you to function at its highest possible level.
That is in large part what the Total Health Progam is all about.