Beirut, Lebanon (CBS) -- They say that laughter is the best medicine and that's certainly the motto of this group of young people gathered in a Beirut dance studio.
They're taking part in a yoga class but won't be learning how to master the perfect Lotus position or head stand.
The purpose of this class, taught by instructor Sabine Jizi, is simple: learning to laugh for no reason.
"Laughter Yoga is about breathing and laughing exercises that makes any person laugh without a reason, without comedy or jokes, talking is not allowed in Laughter Yoga. It all started after a scientific study that says human body does not differentiate between a fake and a real laugh, in both cases we get the same health benefits," explains 22-year-old Jizi.
Jizi launched Beirut's first Laughter Yoga class in August and has been running a weekly class on Sundays ever since.
Laughter Yoga was first popularized by Indian physician Madan Kataria in the 1990s.
It involves warming up with a session of stretching, chanting, clapping and body movement before a period of forced laughter.
Jizi, who travelled to Germany to study the techniques of the discipline, says she fell on the idea by chance.
"I got the whole idea by coincidence, I was surfing the internet and read the word 'laughter yoga' by mistake. I loved its concept after researching about it, and considered it a great project to bring to Lebanon since Lebanese people don't laugh enough," says Jizi.
Lebanon is the first country in the Middle East to embrace the past time that has spread all over the world, says Jizi.
She now runs private sessions for companies, schools and universities. And Jizi's students say they certainly feel the benefit of her class. "This is my first time, I saw it on TV and was curious to try it and know how someone can laugh out of nothing. And this is what happened, we laughed", says Rawan Bou Abdallah.
"It helped me relax and be more positive. When facing stress or any negative thing, I think about Laughter Yoga and laugh," says Nagham Hammoud.
Laughter Yoga's slogan is 'Fake it until you make it'. People may feel ridiculous at first, says Jizi, but the contagious nature of laughter means even beginners are soon splitting their sides.