This week's guest, Paul Bennett, is a kidney disease expert and researcher into laughter therapy

April 26, 2020 00:40:52
This week's guest, Paul Bennett, is a kidney disease expert and researcher into laughter therapy
Vibrant Lives Podcast
This week's guest, Paul Bennett, is a kidney disease expert and researcher into laughter therapy

Apr 26 2020 | 00:40:52

/

Hosted By

Amanda Hayes

Show Notes

When Paul graduated from Nursing in the 1980s, he started working in renal (i.e. kidney) care. His career, which has included further study and eminent research roles, has remained focussed on caring for patients with kidney disease. Currently, Paul is the Director, Medical and Clinical Affairs, at Satellite Health Care in California, an institution that aims to improve the quality of life of dialysis patients. Paul has conducted extensive research into this area including resistance exercise for dialysis patients and laughter and humour therapy, and it is laughter therapy that we dive into in today’s discussion.

Laughter therapy is a structured treatment carried out by a laughter therapist - it is not simply a comedy style routine. It does not need to be limited to dialysis patients and could (and does) have application to anyone suffering from chronic disease. Laughter therapy is, in essence, an exploration of the link between mind and body and how laughter, which is known to improve mental wellbeing, also enhances physical wellbeing e.g. improved heart and blood vessel health, improved immune function. It is, in my opinion, a fascinating area with the potential for broad utilisation.

I hope you enjoy my chat with the affable and humble Paul Bennett (and did I mention he's an Ironman - kudos)!

Here is a link to Paul's profile on ResearchGate where you can view the research papers he’s published: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Paul_Bennett4

Other Episodes

Episode

August 25, 2019 00:29:07
Episode Cover

Sam Alfred - Emergency Medicine Consultant, Toxicologist and snake bite expert

Today’s podcast guest is Sam Alfred, Emergency Medicine Consultant and Clinical Toxicologist. Sam and I discuss his role as a toxicologist, that is the...

Listen

Episode

December 07, 2020 00:53:55
Episode Cover

Promoting positive body image in adolescence with Dr Zali Yager

This week, body image expert, Dr Zali Yager, shares her considerable knowledge and insights into the often thorny and always complex issue of body...

Listen

Episode 107

September 12, 2022 01:02:22
Episode Cover

Exploring some of the links between food and mood with Celeste Ferraris OLY

I have been looking forward to my discussion with Celeste Ferraris OLY for a while now and it did not disappoint!   Celeste is a...

Listen