“Engaging in kindness, contemplating how you can be kind to others, lowers blood pressure. It has therapeutic benefits,” he says. “There are benefits for treating depression and anxiety.”
Reporting for the BBC, writes:
“The staff at UCLA’s Bedari Kindness institute are ready for the jokes.
‘We look at the scientific point of view. We aren’t sitting around in circles, holding hands. We’re talking about the psychology, the biology, of positive social interactions,’ says Daniel Fessler, the institute’s inaugural director.
The notion of kindness has made headlines recently.
It was a key part of former president Barack Obama’s eulogy of veteran US Democrat Elijah Cummings, following his death last month.
‘Being a strong man includes being kind. There’s nothing weak about kindness and compassion,’ he said. ‘There’s nothing weak about looking out for others. You’re not a sucker to have integrity and to treat others with respect.’
And then there was Ellen DeGeneres calling for kindness when speaking about her surprising to some friendship with George W Bush: ‘When I say, ‘Be kind to one another,’ I don’t mean only the people that think the same way that you do. I mean be kind to everyone. It doesn’t matter.’
Ahead of World Kindness Day this week, what does it actually mean to be kind – and why is it important? …”
You can read more here.
