Go Ahead – Curse If You Stub Your Toe

Is your first reaction to swear if you stub your toe or catch your finger in a door? If so, you may be following nature’s way of helping you not feel the pain. Seriously.

According to a study, published recently in the online journal NeuroReport , reacting to pain by swearing was part of the so-called fight-or-flight response humans feel when they perceive a threat.

Researchers studied 67 students who submersed a hand in ice water. Half the group cursed and the other half didn’t. The researchers found that the students who cursed were able to withstand the ice cold water better than those who didn’t swear. What was particularly interesting is that it wasn’t only the perception of pain that changed with swearing, but it was measurable with heart rate. There was also a bigger difference in the pain response among women than men (women responded better to cursing).

~~~~~

Image courtesy PhotoXpress.com