# Crying and gender

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crying-and-gender/115169>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [June 21, 2002, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crying-and-gender/115169 "2002-06-21T00:33:07Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![insider](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/bbe5ce/32.png) [@insider](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/insider)\
**Post date:** [June 21, 2002, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crying-and-gender/115169/1 "2002-06-21T00:33:07Z")

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Do women get more out of crying than men? Are humans the only animal that cries? How often does the average man/woman cry? Is crying healthy? It is possible to laugh until you cry. Is there any difference between crying from laughter and sadness?

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**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\
**Post date:** [June 21, 2002, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crying-and-gender/115169/2 "2002-06-21T00:39:16Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> Is crying healthy?

If done for healthy reasons, yes. If you’re crying because you are sad or because you are overjoyed, then your crying is probably completely healthy. If you are crying because you want the person you are with to do what you want them to do, and they aren’t cooperating, but you know the tears will convince them to do so, then your crying is probably pretty unhealthy.

> [@](#):
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> Is there any difference between crying from laughter and sadness?

Physiologically? Probably not.

Hope this helps.

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**Author:** ![violet9](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/ea666f/32.png) [@violet9](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/violet9)\
**Post date:** [June 22, 2002, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crying-and-gender/115169/3 "2002-06-22T16:37:14Z")

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There have been really interesting studies done on crying - I don’t have any info to hand, but I imagine you can find something on the web. I remember from my reading, that one fairly well substantiated theory for crying was that it ‘bled’ off hormonal substances produced present when one is in an agitated or emotionally painful state. And that tears shed during these periods differed chemically from the normal tears present in the eye. The studies also found that boys and girls cry about the same amount until adolescence.

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**Author:** ![Badbug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Badbug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Badbug)\
**Post date:** [June 24, 2002, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crying-and-gender/115169/4 "2002-06-24T02:35:24Z")

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I concur with Violet9. I also read an article that reported that the tears shed during sadness differed chemically from tears shed during joy. Perhaps a result of different chemical reactions in the body that caused/reacted to the stimulus that produced the crying in the first place?