You know the over-exaggerated phrases we use to describe how funny something is. Without a doubt, you’ve used at least one (or one along the same lines) thus far in your lifetime.
“I was laughing so hard I couldn’t breathe.”
“That’s so funny; I’m dying from laughing.”
“I laughed until I died.”
Well, did you ever stop to think where those phrases ever came from? I mean, how did someone ever come to find some sort of relationship between laughing – something evoked from humor and happiness – and death?
Turns out, there is actually such a relationship. Kuru, known to many as the New Guinea laughing disease, is a neurological disorder which causes various symptoms, one being uncontrollable outbursts of laughter. Doesn't sound so bad, right? Wrong. Kuru is incurable and ultimately leads to death. Though the laughing itself is not what directly causes the ultimate demise, it is still a component of this sickness.
Now, no one is to say that these phrases were derived from Kuru; scientists did discover it more recently than I would have thought (mid 1900s). However, it is interesting to see that in a phrase which no one takes literally actually has some merit.
So, next time you've laugh so hard you think you might be die, remember that some people actually have. Spooky.
If you're interested in learning more about this disease, please follow the link. What you read will intrigue you -- if not disturb you -- I'm sure.
