Category Archives: Buzz

Love on the brain

Posted on October 4, 2010 by Stace

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- RESEARCHERS HAVE DISCOVERED THAT THE FIRST BRAIN ACTIVITY SPECIFIC TO LOVE STARTS WITHIN ONE FIFTH OF A SECOND OF BEING SMITTEN.

- SOME OF THESE AREAS ARE THOSE THAT ARE ALSO ACTIVE WHEN PEOPLE ARE UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF EUPHORIA-INDUCING DRUGS – SUGGESTING THAT FALLING IN LOVE MAY HAVE A SIMILAR EFFECT ON THE BRAIN AS USING COCAINE.

- THE HARDER AN AREA OF THE BRAIN WORKS, THE GREATER THE AMOUNT OF OXYGEN IT CONSUMES.

- OVERALL, DR ORTIGUE’S ANALYSIS SHOWS THAT PASSIONATE LOVE INVOLVES BRAIN AREAS INVOLVED IN EMOTION, MOTIVATION, REWARD, SOCIAL COGNITION, ATTENTION, AND SELF-REPRESENTATION OR BODY IMAGE.

- ACTIVITY IN THESE BRAIN AREAS LEADS TO CHANGES IN THE LEVELS OF A NUMBER OF CHEMICALS IN THE BESOTTED BRAIN, INCLUDING INCREASES IN DOPAMINE, OXYTOCIN, ADRENALINE, VASOPRESSIN, AND A DECREASE IN SEROTONIN, WHICH RESULTS IN THE CLASSIC LOVE SYMPTOMS, LIKE OBSESSIVELY THINKING ABOUT THE BELOVED, CRAVING FOR A UNION WITH HIM OR HER, EUPHORIA, AND GREATER ENERGY.

- DOPAMINE IS ASSOCIATED WITH FEELINGS OF EUPHORIA, MOTIVATION, MOTOR ACTIVITY, DESIRE, CRAVING AND ADDICTION, WHILE ADRENALINE HEIGHTENS AN INDIVIDUAL’S ATTENTION, AND BOOSTS SHORT-TERM MEMORY, HYPERACTIVITY, AND GOAL-ORIENTED BEHAVIOR. IT IS ALSO ADRENALINE WHICH GETS THE HEART RACING.

- THE RESEARCHERS ALSO FOUND THAT THE HIGHER THE LEVELS OF NGF (NERVE GROWTH FACTOR), THE GREATER THE INTENSITY OF THE RELATIONSHIP.

- THE SUGGESTION IS THAT SEX DRIVE EVOLVED TO MOTIVATE INDIVIDUALS TO SEEK A RANGE OF MATING PARTNERS, WHILE ATTRACTION AND ROMANTIC LOVE EVOLVED TO MOTIVATE THEM TO PREFER AND PURSUE SPECIFIC PARTNERS, AND ATTACHMENT EVOLVED TO MOTIVATE THEM TO REMAIN TOGETHER LONG ENOUGH TO COMPLETE PARENTING RESPONSIBILITIES.

- 12 AREAS OF THE BRAIN INVOLVED IN PASSIONATE LOVE:

• CAUDATE NUCLEUS/PUTAMEN
  
• THALAMUS
  
• VENTRAL TEGMENTAL AREA
• INSULA
• ANTERIOR CINGULATE
• POSTERIOR HIPPOCAMPUS
• OCCIPITAL
• OCCIPITO-TEMPORAL/FUSIFORM REGION
• ANGULAR GYRUS/TEMPORO-PARIENTAL JUNCTION
• DORSOLATERAL MIDDLE FRONTAL GYRUS
• SUPERIOR TEMPORAL GYRUS
• PRECENTRAL GYRUS

- WHEN PEOPLE WERE SHOWN NAMES OF LOVED ONES, ELECTRICAL ACTIVITY WAS SWIFT. ACTIVITY SPIKED VERY QUICKLY AT A PRE-CONSCIOUS LEVEL, OR WITHIN 200 MILLISECONDS, IN ONE OF THOSE 12 SEPARATE AREAS OF THE BRAIN, THE ANGULAR GYRUS.

• THIS AREA IS INVOLVED IN THE PROCESSING OF VISUAL IMAGES, SOUNDS, LANGUAGE COMPREHENSION, METAPHORS, AND BODILY SELF-REPRESENTATION.

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