Effects of Laughter Yoga in the Third Trimester

August 27, 2026 updated by: NURTEN ÖZÇALKAP, Agri Ibrahim Cecen University

Laughter Yoga for Pregnant Women in the Third Trimester: Evaluation of Its Effects on Stress, Psychosocial Health, and Brain Fog

Pregnancy is a physiological process during which a number of biological changes occur in a woman's body. This period represents an important turning point in the lives of women, whose reproductive capacity ensures the continuation of generations. While some women perceive pregnancy as a source of joy and happiness because of the anticipated arrival of a new family member, others may perceive it as a source of worry, anxious anticipation, and stress.

In addition to physical and hormonal changes, expectant mothers experience numerous psychological and social changes during pregnancy. A woman's psychological state and experiences may influence the course of pregnancy, while pregnancy itself may also cause significant changes in her psychological state. Women who are unable to adequately adapt to these changes may experience various psychological problems due to pregnancy-related bodily changes and physical complaints, concerns about parenthood, changes in family and social roles, fear of childbirth, unwanted pregnancy and miscarriage, new challenges and needs arising from pregnancy, concerns and worries about the baby, parenting stress, low self-esteem, a persistent tendency toward negative thinking, lack of social support and social isolation, marital and partner-related problems, domestic violence, adverse life experiences, alcohol and tobacco use during pregnancy, chronic diseases, inadequate weight gain during pregnancy, exposure to sexual abuse, employment-related issues, and financial concerns. If these psychological problems arising during pregnancy are not resolved, emotional distress may continue to increase, potentially leading to stress and depression

Symptoms of brain fog, such as forgetfulness and absent-mindedness, may occur once or twice during pregnancy or may persist throughout pregnancy. Brain fog may become more pronounced during periods of fatigue or irregular sleep, such as in the early or late stages of pregnancy. Studies conducted among pregnant women have shown that fluctuations in progesterone and estrogen during pregnancy may lead to impairments in attention, memory, and executive functioning because the brain is sensitive to changes in hormone levels.

Laughter yoga (Laughter Therapy/Laughter Yoga), developed by Dr. Kataria, is a therapeutic method that combines yogic breathing techniques with laughter exercises. A systematic review reported that laughter yoga physiologically increases oxygenation, relaxes muscles, stimulates circulation and the immune system, increases endorphin release and thereby enhances the pain threshold and pain tolerance, strengthens mental functioning by reducing stress hormone levels, decreases depression and anxiety, improves sleep quality, and promotes psychological well-being by enhancing interpersonal relationships and social interaction. The literature highlights the positive physiological, psychological, and social effects of laughter on health. Although laughter yoga has increasingly been used in healthcare in recent years, positive outcomes have been reported across different age groups and health conditions. Laughter yoga performed with pregnant women has been reported to reduce the frequency of pregnancy-related symptoms and increase psychological well-being and prenatal attachment levels. However, no studies examining its effects on the outcomes addressed in the present study were identified in the literature. Therefore, this study aims to determine the effects of laughter yoga on perceived stress, psychosocial health, and brain fog among pregnant women in the third trimester.

Keywords: laughter, pregnancy, stress, psychosocial health, brain fog

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Enrolling by invitation

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
82

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • Turkey (Türkiye)
    • Ağri
      • Ağrı, Ağri, Turkey (Türkiye), 04100
        • Ağrı İbrahim Çeçen University

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Being 18 years of age or older
  • Having no communication barriers
  • Applying for antenatal education during the study period
  • Volunteering to participate in the study
  • Being in the third trimester of pregnancy
  • Having no condition that would prevent participation in laughter yoga sessions

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Refusing to participate in the study
  • Providing incomplete responses or failing to answer the questions in the questionnaire
  • Having a high-risk pregnancy
  • Having a multiple pregnancy (e.g., twins)

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Other
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: 1.laughter
laughter therapy
Other: laughter therapy
Participants will receive a total of **4-5 laughter therapy sessions** during the study period.
No Intervention: 2 CONTROL

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Descriptive Information Form:
Time Frame: Baseline and immediately after completion of the final laughter yoga session
This form was developed by the researchers based on the relevant literature to assess the sociodemographic characteristics of the participants.
Baseline and immediately after completion of the final laughter yoga session
Perceived Stress Scale (PSS):
Time Frame: Baseline and immediately after completion of the final laughter yoga session
The scale, developed by Cohen et al., consists of 14 items and was designed to assess the extent to which situations in an individual's life are perceived as stressful. Participants rate each item on a 5-point Likert-type scale ranging from "Never (0)" to "Very Often (4)." Seven positively worded items are reverse-scored. In the Turkish adaptation, reliability, and validity study of the Perceived Stress Scale conducted by Eskin et al., the Turkish PSS-14 demonstrated an internal consistency coefficient of 0.84 and a test-retest reliability coefficient of 0.87. The scale was concluded to be a valid and reliable instrument for assessing perceived stress.
Baseline and immediately after completion of the final laughter yoga session
The Antenatal Psychosocial Health Assessment Scale
Time Frame: Baseline and immediately after completion of the final laughter yoga session
This scale was developed by Yıldız to assess psychosocial health during pregnancy. It consists of 46 items and six subscales: characteristics related to pregnancy and the spousal relationship, characteristics related to anxiety and stress, characteristics related to domestic violence, characteristics related to the need for psychosocial support, familial characteristics, and characteristics related to physical and psychosocial changes associated with pregnancy. The total score is divided by the number of items to obtain a mean score ranging from 1 to 5. Scores closer to 1 indicate greater psychosocial health problems during pregnancy, with a score of 1 representing very poor psychosocial health. The Cronbach's alpha coefficient of the scale was reported as 0.93.
Baseline and immediately after completion of the final laughter yoga session
Brain Fog Scale
Time Frame: Baseline and immediately after completion of the final laughter yoga session
The scale consists of 30 items and three subscales. The total score ranges from 30 to 150. The Cognitive Symptoms subscale is scored between 17 and 85, the Physical Symptoms subscale between 8 and 40, and the Psychological Symptoms subscale between 5 and 25. Higher scores on the subscales and/or the overall scale indicate higher levels of brain fog.
Baseline and immediately after completion of the final laughter yoga session

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Agri Ibrahim Cecen University

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
November 30, 2025

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
March 30, 2026

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
November 30, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
August 25, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
August 27, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
August 31, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
August 31, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
August 27, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
August 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 2025 /37

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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