While we all know that compassion is a good thing, science shows us that compassion is good for us and that it has a strong health benefit.
Play for Peace is a community of youth and adults who are out there right now in the world creating peace. Children, youth, and adults are deciding to choose compassion and practice peace, and they are learning to do this through play for peace. What is compassion? Compassion is the emotional recognition of another's suffering and a desire to alleviate that suffering. While we all know that compassion is a good thing, science shows us that compassion is good for us and that it has a strong health benefit. Steven Cole at UCLA's Cousins Center for Psychoneuroimmunology and Barbara L. Fredrickson at the University of North Carolina have conducted studies on how positive psychology impacts human gene expression resulting in lowered inflammation and increased ability to fight disease.
[i] At the University of British Columbia, Elizabeth Dunn along with Michael Norton found that participants whom had been given money to spend on others felt significantly happier than those who had spent money on themselves.
[ii] Other studies have found that compassion can lead to reduced stress and lower mortality. For example, Stephanie Brown at Stony Brook University and her colleagues found that “helping behavior predicts reduced mortality by buffering the effects of stress.”
At Stanford University, the Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education (CCARE) was founded “with the explicit goal of promoting, supporting, and conducting rigorous scientific studies of compassion and altruistic behavior.” Researchers are working in collaboration with colleagues in psychology and the neurosciences worldwide to further research on compassion and altruism. This fun info-graphic created by Dr. Emma Seppala, summarizes the Scientific Benefits of Compassion.
Get more compassion in your life - join the Compassion Games today!
To help you get your shot of Compassionate Acts in your life join the Compassion Games: Survival of the Kindest Giving Games which begins December 1st! It is so easy to join and play. There is no cost involved. Sign up with your kids, neighborhood group, classroom or place of worship, and join in the fun. 
You can sign up now and begin receiving tips and suggestions about how YOU can play the 2015 Giving Games!
Bibliography [i] Fredrickson BL, Grewen KM, Coffey KA, Algoe SB, Firestine AM, Arevalo JM, Ma J, Cole SW. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2013 Aug 13;110 (33):13684-9. [ii] Dunn, E. W., *Aknin, L. B., & Norton, M. I. (2008). Spending money on others promotes happiness. Science, 319, 1687-1688.
