Healthy Living
Shouting out when hurt can help deal with pain─── 12:30 Mon, 02 Feb 2015
![Shouting out when hurt can help deal with pain Shouting out when hurt can help deal with pain | News Article](https://oscar.ofm.co.za/img/ofmcmCMG671d41bf-2b93-48a9-ad9b-09bb5636014e.jpg?w=600&h=300&mode=crop&anchor=middlecenter&scale=both)
Saying "ow" might actually help when dealing with pain.
Who can help themselves from crying out when stubbing their toe? Not many people, we bet. But rather than just alerting others to feel sorry for you, it could also be a clever way your body distracts you from feeling the full extent of the pain.
According to a new study, vocalising discomfort interferes with pain messages to the brain.
Originally it was believed shouting a version of "ouch" was simply a way of alerting others to danger. However, it could be more sophisticated than that.
Researchers from the psychology and neurobiology departments at the National University of Singapore say the phenomenon is present across languages, with shouts of pain remarkably similar across the world.
"Shared among these is a sound during which the mouth simply opens, the tongue lies flat and the lips remain unrounded," claims the study, published in the Journal of Pain.
"It is a simple sound that requires little articulatory control, while maximising volume output. As such it may be used quite easily and effectively when in pain."
How did they realise all this? With a bucket of painfully cold water of course.
Scientists rounded up 56 participants who were told to submerge their hands in the icy water and keep them there for as long as they could physically stand it. On the first go, the volunteers were allowed to vocalise their discomfort by shouting "ow".
The experiment was then repeated four times, with the volunteers told to keep completely quiet. In one test they were told to press a button when they felt pain, in another they were played recordings of themselves shouting "ow". There was also a round where they were played a clip of other people vocalising pain, while in another they just had to sit passively.
Participants were able to stand the discomfort longest when they were allowed to shout about it. In fact, they managed 30 seconds on average, which is five seconds longer than when they were told to sit passively. And simply hearing recordings of "ouch" did nothing to increase their pain thresholds.
"[It shows] vocalising in pain is not only communicative," the researchers noted.
"We have demonstrated that vocalising in and of itself is potentially analgesic. We found that a simple vocal act such as saying 'ow' helps individuals cope with pain."
So next time you stub your toe, shout away - it can only help!
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