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National Smile Day

Turn that frown upside down and give us a grin! Smiling is contagious, and the world could use a little more of it.

Attitudes & Emotions Body & Health Life & Living Mental Health Silly & Humorous45

Marketing angleinferred

Leverage National Smile Day to promote dental care, wellness products, and mental health benefits while positioning your brand as a happiness enabler.

Relevance 45medium intent

Share science-backed benefits of smiling (endorphins, stress relief, longevity) to drive health & wellness engagement
Dental care brands: spotlight oral health as the foundation of a confident smile
User-generated content campaign: #SmileChallenge encouraging customers to share their smiles and spread positivity
Mental health angle: position smiling as an accessible daily wellness practice for stress management

History

It’s logical to assume that people have been smiling all throughout human history. Even for very tiny babies it doesn’t take long until they catch a view of something they enjoy and learn to smile about it.

Smiles have been bringing joy and delight to people of all ages for thousands of years. And it seems that smiling can even be good for one’s health!

This particular day for celebrating the smile, National Smile Day, got its start in 2018. The day was founded when two dentists, Dr. Tim Stirneman and Jim Wojdyla from Compassionate Dental Care in Illinois, were motivated to get people to smile more. The purpose of the day is to share with the world exactly what a healthy smile can do.

National Smile Day acts as an important part of National Smile Month, which takes place in part of May and part of June every year. World Smile Day is another celebration dedicated to the smile, which is situated in the month of November.

How to celebrate

Smile at Someone

Choose anyone or everyone to give a little smile to in celebration of National Smile Day. Not only is it fun to show off those pearly whites, smiles are often reciprocated and can even become contagious. So when one person spends the whole day smiling at other people, whether at work, at school or at the grocery store, it’s likely that person will not only smile back, but they may also pass it on to someone else. It’s just not that hard to create a virtual pandemic of smiles! Learn Some Benefits of SmilingMany people don’t realize that the act of smiling can actually come with a number of benefits to a person’s physical, mental and overall general health. Learn about some of these benefits and share them with others to raise awareness about the amazing power of smiling for National Smile Day:Smiling releases endorphins. Though smiling can be a reaction to being happy, studies also show that smiling can actually make a person happier. Hormones that indicate well-being are released even with a fake smile!Smiling can relieve stress. In the short term, the endorphins released from smiling can act as a pain reducer and can help prevent illness, protect against cancer and have other benefits over the long haul.Smiling helps people live longer. Studies have shown that intense, genuine smiling is associated with a longer life span!Smiling can lower blood pressure. Smiling that is associated with laughter may reduce blood pressure which offers benefits for heart health.

FAQ

Are there proven health benefits to smiling, or is it just a feel‑good idea?

Research in psychology and medicine suggests that smiling is linked to several health benefits. Smiling and laughter are associated with lower levels of stress hormones, reduced heart rate, and lower blood pressure, especially in situations of mild stress. Some experimental studies have found that holding a smile can help the body recover more quickly from stressful tasks, and regular positive affect, which includes smiling, has been associated with better immune function and lower risk of certain illnesses over time. These effects are modest on their own but can contribute to overall well‑being when combined with other healthy habits.

What is the difference between a genuine smile and a “fake” smile?

Scientists often distinguish between a genuine “Duchenne” smile and a social or posed smile. A Duchenne smile typically involves both the muscles around the mouth and those around the eyes, which produces the familiar “crow’s feet” and a slightly squinting appearance. Posed or polite smiles usually engage mainly the mouth muscles without much change around the eyes. Studies using facial coding and brain imaging have shown that genuine smiles are more strongly linked with positive emotion and are more likely to be perceived by others as warm, trustworthy, and sincere.

Can forcing a smile actually improve someone’s mood?

The idea that changing facial expression can influence emotion is known as the “facial feedback hypothesis.” Some experiments have found that people who hold a smile, even when instructed to do so, report slightly more positive feelings or find amusing stimuli funnier than those who keep a neutral expression. However, more recent, larger replications show mixed results, suggesting the effect is small and may depend on the situation and how the study is designed. Current evidence indicates that deliberately smiling might nudge mood in a positive direction for some people, but it is not a substitute for addressing underlying mental health concerns.

Why do people in some cultures smile more than in others?

Smiling is a human universal, but its frequency and meaning vary across cultures. Cross‑cultural research shows that people in countries that place a high value on individual happiness and positive emotions, such as the United States, tend to smile more often in public. In contrast, in cultures where emotional restraint is valued or where there is lower trust in strangers, people may smile less at unfamiliar others. In some societies, frequent smiling can even be interpreted as a sign of naivety or insincerity. These differences reflect broader cultural norms about how emotions should be expressed and when friendliness is appropriate.

Can smiling be misunderstood in cross‑cultural communication?

Yes. Because cultures differ in when and to whom smiling is considered appropriate, the same expression can send different signals in different places. For example, in some East Asian contexts a smile can be used to mask discomfort, embarrassment, or disagreement, rather than to signal happiness. In certain Eastern European cultures, smiling at strangers without a clear reason may be seen as suspicious or insincere. Travelers and international professionals often benefit from paying attention to local norms, combining facial expressions with context and verbal cues to avoid misinterpretation.

Do smiles really influence how trustworthy or competent a person appears?

Nonverbal communication research indicates that smiling usually increases perceptions of warmth and approachability, and in many contexts it can also boost perceived trustworthiness. However, the impact on perceived competence is more complex and depends on the situation. In customer‑facing roles or cooperative settings, smiling can enhance impressions of competence, while in high‑stakes negotiations or power‑oriented roles, excessive smiling may be read as lower dominance or authority. People tend to form these judgments quickly, which is why facial expressions can subtly shape first impressions in social and professional life.

How does smiling develop in babies and what does it mean at different ages?

Newborns show brief smiles that are often reflexive, especially during sleep. By around 6 to 8 weeks of age, many infants begin to show “social smiles,” which occur in response to faces, voices, or interaction. These social smiles play an important role in bonding, as caregivers naturally respond with attention and affection. As babies grow, their smiles become more differentiated, and by late infancy they may smile to invite play, show preference for familiar people, or respond to shared enjoyment. Developmental research views smiling as a key milestone in emotional and social development, rather than just a simple reflex.