There are no medicinal properties to tears—there, I said it. There are no mystical powers, or mental health catharsis that comes with crying. It’s a fact. Yes. I know. “There is cortisol in tears!” And it’s true. But that doesn’t mean you are “flushing stress out your system” by crying. First of all, the amount of cortisol is tiny, and the volume of water that is excreted by crying, is miniscule. And second, there is cortisol in many things body related – hair, fingernails, ear wax, saliva, fat, muscle, teeth, blood, sweat, even piss and s**t has cortisol in it (and at a higher concentration than tears), and yet I’ve never heard of the same medicinal properties ascribed to taking a dump, have you? However – Emotional tears DO indirectly bring positive mental health benefits. Namely through their ability to signal distress to our peers, and increase the chances that sympathy or support will arrive. Yes. There are many secrets hidden in tears, and many benefits too – just not the ones we’re so often told about. So let’s learn from the world’s leading expert on emotional crying, Emeritus Professor Ad Vingerhoets... What do you think?

2026-03-05