Did you know that swearing could be good for your health? Listening to a group of friends tell stories, the chances of hearing someone swear on several occasions are higher today than any other time in the past century. Research on swearing reveals significant growth in the swearing rate, especially in the last decade. 

This could be attributed to the widespread interconnectivity, exposing people to multiple choices of entertainment. The internet has also allowed all sorts of content and interactions between different cultures. However, this is not all the reason making people develop such a strong tradition for taboo words.

The text below elaborates further on the matter, showing scientific evidence of how swearing could be beneficial based on the dynamic nature of modern lifestyles.

The Social Aspect

When people talk, you will notice how they change their tone once they notice someone observing. Depending on the impression they wish to make, people may use more swear words, or avoid them entirely. 

Initially, swear words were considered taboo in most social aspects. But today, people interpret them depending on context and social setup. 

Friends, for example, are more comfortable and expressive around those who use swear words more than those who do not. In such a context, the use of these words indicates their strong bonds beyond taboos. On the other hand, a public speaker is often deemed vulgar for including certain words in a speech.

Swearing words also establish interactive freedom between coworkers. Others may address them to strangers as a way of encouraging open-mindedness. 

Emotional Tension Relief

People mostly use swearing words to express how they feel about something. The “F” word is the most common and has a broader range of situations that trigger its use. Mostly, people would use it when something goes wrong. In this case, saying the word expresses disappointment, thereby relieving some anxiety.

People may also swear when they are excited. Excitement puts some emotional pressure on a person. Uttering the swear word may help release some anxiety. Cursing often comes in handy in high-tension situations, for instance, in a high stake casino game. Sometimes flimsy mistakes made by a casino player lead to instant consequences, and most players will repeatedly swear in response.   

The emotional association is the reason why people sometimes say curse words without noticing.

Easing Physical Pain

In a study done by Richard Stephens of U.K’s Keele University, he observed that swearing helps mitigate pain. He engages participants in an experiment where they would dip their fingers in freezing water for an extended duration.

People who swore seemed to cope better with the physical discomfort, longer than those who said less offensive words.

The effectiveness of swearing stems from the taboo factor. The assumption is that people should not use certain words, and so most of their triggers should be suppressed in the first place. Relieve comes from the guilt of uttering such words, though people hardly feel guilty once it turns into a habit.

Also, in real-life, people swear when they are hurt. Swearing triggers an emotional response that distracts from the physical pain, making it less severe. However, people who swear more often end up developing tolerance against such conditioned responses.

Effects on Mental Disorders

It is observed that mentally disabled people swear with as much ease as others. People with mental disorders may have difficulty speaking or understanding certain words but still maintain a high ability to curse when triggered. For example, people with Tourette have a word repetition problem but do not repeat when swearing.

The observation implies that human brains understand swearing as an expression rather than language.

Swearing in Animals

Washoe, a chimpanzee, adopted in the 1960s by R. Allen Gardner and Beatrix T. Gardner, was trained to associate dirt with placing knuckles under the chin. 

Chimpanzees use excrement to keep others from their territories. Therefore, excrement is equally disgusting to them. The training utilized this fact to teach Washoe gesturing. 

Later, the chimpanzee would use the gesture to show that something was unpleasant. Not only did the chimp use it to communicate with humans, but also when she did not like something other chimps were doing.

This way, the gesture was her way of swearing. Washoe, later on, passed the knowledge to her children without the help of human trainers. Intriguing, right?

Sometimes swearing words are replaced with symbolic letters to reduce their offensiveness, for example, the ‘F’ word. Besides, saying the entire word comes out offensive even in the context of reporting. 

But, as people use taboo words more frequently, their severity reduces, disqualifying them as offensive words to those using them. This way, time causes an evolution of what people see as swearing. This is evident even in Europe, where swearing is taken with more weight. Recently, more people have become receptive to swearing, even the elderly. In a few years, such conservative places will be using the words as much as they are used in other parts of the world.