Egao
Smile for your Wellbeing
To name a few: smiling, e.g., elevates mood, relieves stress, boosts the immune system, and reduces pain.
We smile when we are happy. But did you know that we also become happy when we smile? Even fake smiling activates pathways in your brain that put you in an emotionally happy state [1]. This phenomenon is known as the facial feedback effect. A 2019 meta-analysis [2]of 138 studies verified its moderate but significant impact on happiness.
If there is one thing there is too much of in today’s world - it is stress. Stress influences how we feel, look, and interact with others (mostly not for the better). Taking a short break and putting on a smile helps you decrease stress levels [3]. You and your surrounding will benefit from it.
Smiling can also strengthen your immune system. Immune functions seem to improve because it relaxes you due to the release of neurotransmitters [4]. A simple smile can contribute to your overall health.
Smiling releases endorphins, which are our body’s natural painkillers. When smiling, we are better prepared to deal with pain than otherwise [5].
Get all the stats you desire about how often and how long you smile. See your averages and records and try to smile today more than yesterday.
Consistency is key. Just one smile every other day will not change much. Especially when the intervention is so small as a smile, it is easy to forget about it. Egao helps you to be consistent and smile regularly with freely customizable reminders.
Egao is smart (at least somewhat). Thanks to a locally run artificial neural network, it detects your smiles and automatically counts and times them for you.
Your beautiful smiles and all data about them are stored only locally. Of course, everything is exportable, so you can use it any way you like.
[1] Marmolejo-Ramos, F., Murata, A., Sasaki, K., Yamada, Y., Ikeda, A., Hinojosa, J.A., Watanabe, K., Parzuchowski, M., Tirado, C., & Ospina, R. (2020). Your face and moves seem happier when I smile. Experimental Psychology, 67(1), 14–22. https://doi.org/10.1027/1618-3169/a000470
[2] Coles, N.A., Larsen, J.T., & Lench, H.C. (2019). A meta-analysis of the facial feedback literature: Effects of facial feedback on emotional experience are small and variable. Psychological Bulletin, 145(6), 610–651. https://doi.org/10.1037/bul0000194
[3] Kraft, T.L. & Pressman, S.D. (2012). Grin and bear it: The influence of manipulated facial expression on the stress response. Psychological Science, 23(11), 1372–1378. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797612445312
[4] D’Acquisto, F., Rattazzi, L., & Piras, G. (2014). Smile - It’s in your blood! Biochemical Pharmacology, 91(3), 287–292. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bcp.2014.07.016
[5] Pressman, S.D., Acevedo, A.M., Hammond, K.V., & Kraft-Feil, T.L. (2020). Smile (Or grimace) through the pain? The effects of experimentally manipulated facial expressions on needle-injection responses. Emotion. Published online. https://doi.org/10.1037/emo0000913