Dalai Lama once said, “A simple smile. That’s the start of opening your heart and being compassionate to others.” Even from that single sentence, you can reap so much wisdom and realise that a simple curve of your lips can make the world a better place. What's more, smiling can have a few benefits for your health, social life, career and many other aspects of your life. From making you more attractive to reducing stress, a smile will improve your life in many ways. So, if you’d like to learn more about why you should always turn that frown upside down, stay tuned.

Did you know that smiling is contagious? You’ve probably noticed that when you hear someone laughing from the bottom of their heart, you just can’t stop yourself from at least giggling slightly. Well, the same goes for smiling. When you see a stranger in the street or at the restaurant looking at you and offer you a pleasant smile, your instinctual reaction will be to smile back and maybe even think of making the next step, which will ultimately result in another smile again. A simple smile can lighten up the mood in the entire room and bring in positive vibes as well.

Would you rather have a conversation with someone who's constantly frowned or with someone who throws in a smile or two into the conversation every once in a while? The answer is kind of obvious, because nobody wants to spend time with negative and grumpy people. So, another reason to smile more often is that you'll look more approachable. According to studies, people will rather engage socially with people who are smiling because a smile is interpreted as a socially inviting gesture. Alongside making better social relationships, by being more approachable, you can also advance in your career too. Customers will always more gladly interact with an employee who has a friendly smile, rather than with a person who doesn’t seem interested much. 

 

Another reason to smile more is that it will make you look more attractive. It’s a known fact that people who smile more are perceived as more easy-going and generally positive, which is always a plus. Therefore, you should always make sure your teeth are flawless, so that you can show them off in a wide pearly white grin. If you haven’t been taking care of your teeth recently, make sure you look for a good orthodontist in Wollongong and give your teeth the proper care they deserve. Do a whitening treatment, straighten them up if necessary and never hide your smile again but show it off and look how you’ll appear more attractive to the guy or a girl you’ve had your eye on for some time.

Neurotransmitters, endorphins, natural painkillers, and serotonin together are responsible for making us feel good. When you smile, your body releases these hormones and naturally makes you feel better. Also, these chemicals relax the body and reduce physical pain. Therefore, you could say that a smile is a natural feel-good drug that you should practice more often. Smiling can also trick the body into helping you elevate your mood. Once you smile, the brain perceives that as an act of happiness, making you feel much better instantly, which makes smiling a natural antidepressant as well.

Stress can consume our entire being, which can take a lot of toll on our entire body and reflect the most on our faces. If you smile more often, you won’t look as tired, worn down, and overwhelmed, but you’ll feel and look less stressed out. Smiling has the power to reduce stress even. Some studies have shown that when recovering from a stressful situation, people who were smiling had lower heart rates than those with a neutral facial expression. By decreasing hormone levels, a smile can also increase immune cells and infection-fighting antibodies, which will improve your resistance to disease. Additionally, a good, hearty laugh relieves physical tension as well, which will leave your muscles relaxed for up to 45 minutes. 

A smile is a very powerful tool that can improve your overall health and skyrocket your social life alongside your career. So, there’s really no reason for you to delay smiling any longer. If you maybe think your teeth are not white enough, a good dentist can always fix that problem and allow you to start making yourself and other people more positive with a simple curve on your face.