Art is freeing, implies an article in the October 15, 2000 issue of the news-about-Sweden journal The Local. The report begins by saying:
Art "eases constipation" – Swedish research
Viewing and discussing art not only soothes the soul, it also helps cure ills like high blood pressure and constipation, a Swedish researcher said on Friday.
Britt-Maj Wikstr?m of the Ersta Sk?ndal University College in Stockholm had 20 women of around 80 years of age gather once a week for four months to discuss different works of art.
"The result was positive. Their attitudes became more positive, more creative, their blood pressure went in the right direction … and they used fewer laxatives," she told AFP.
(Thanks to Betsy Devine for bringing this to our attention.)