What Cursing Does For the Human Body

Ah, cursing. Something scorned by many but done by everybody. The cute little exclamations elementary schoolers make, like “darn it!” or “frick!”, and then feel cool about it, because they realize they just “cursed,” something all teachers and parents don’t want kids doing. In fact, one of the biggest rules in all activities is to treat others with respect. For example, in the Vex VRC rulebook, the very first rule G1 (General Game Rules) states “Treat Everyone with Respect”. One of the best ways to do this is not to curse other people.

As people grow up, they might start using stronger swear words. I have watched kids get in trouble saying these words, both at BISVand my old school. My old school, in fact, was very harsh on anyone they caught cursing. One of my friends was only cursing playfully but ended up being summoned to the headmaster’s office for bad behavior. All of this shows how severe cursing is treated by many schools, yet people use it so often each year. Why may this be?

Well, one explanation is that it feels good to vocally express yourself after getting frustrated. Since you know that you are saying something bad, or being extremely rude, it doesn’t matter who you direct it to. Still, it feels very good, most of the time, to curse, or blame something, on someone else. As a result, you will “blow off” some steam and feel relieved. 

Furthermore, according to a study explained in NBC News, swearing actually makes one seem honest. Since swearing is considered the rawest of all human languages, it makes a human seem credible and trustworthy. Interestingly, thinking about curse words makes someone much more creative. A study done in 2015 showed that when people with a large knowledge of vocabulary were asked to think of non-curse words starting with “A,” “F,” and “S,” there were far fewer words than the number of words listed when these same people were asked to form curse words starting with “A,” “F,” and “S”. 

Lastly, cursing helps with pain. After you’ve banged your leg or your head on something, your body will immediately send signals to your brain, causing you to feel a sharp pain. When in danger, the natural response for a human is to go into “fight or flight” mode. By cursing, these spoken profanities will make the brain rapidly secrete adrenaline, which is the hormone that controls the fight or flight. However, this process also acts as a natural anesthetic. The increased rate of adrenaline secretion can effectively numb the pain, serving as a quick outlet to relieve your injuries.

As a result, cursing may not be as bad as people believe, as it may enhance creativity and is our natural bodily response to pain. But something that is absolutely, undoubtedly true is that once you’ve bumped yourself on something, let a few of those profanities fly, you will feel instant relief

Citations: 

Page , Danielle. “When Cursing Is Good for Your Health.” NBCNews.Com, NBCUniversal News Group, 5 Feb. 2018, www.nbcnews.com/better/health/when-cursing-good-your-health-ncna843776.