Cursing: The Best Way to Pass the Pain

"Lightning and thunder" ... This is - or worse things - that everyone talks about by tapping the corner of the couch or barefoot on a LEGO piece. No use denying, everyone curses when in pain. And this is no coincidence, after all, there is a scientific reason why people will swear and offend at what is around at the sharpest pain.

A study by Keele University (UK) found that swearing can help people feel up to 50% less pain than those who do not say harsh words. To achieve this, the researchers placed the hands of 64 volunteers in near-frozen water in two moments: asked them to repeat offensive words in one of them and then did the same with common words.

When they said bad words, the volunteers could keep their hands in the cold water for two minutes (on average). That is 45 seconds longer than when they were just saying common phrases - 1 minute and 15 seconds.

Why does it happen?

According to Richard Stephens, one of the psychologists in charge of the Keele University study, "swearing increases your tolerance for pain." One of the main reasons for this is the perception of pain, which is less present in the mind of the injured person. Stephens reinforces: “The priority is to make the pain go away. If cursing got worse, that wouldn't be logical. ”

The researcher also came to the conclusion that the more a person uses profanity in everyday life, the less “pain relieving” effect they offer. For this reason, in women they end up being more efficient than in men - since they often talk more than they do.

Source: Time and LifeHacker