There is no doubt that one of the most important subjects throughout human history: "Love". The effects of love on the human brain are quite remarkable. During the period of passionate love, the hormone that grows nerve cells is secreted 2-3 times more than normal. Stating that love rejuvenates the brain, Prof. Dr. Sultan Tarlacı pointed out that the decision mechanism of the brain works less during the period of soaking love and drew attention to the accuracy of the saying "When love comes, the mind goes" in the field of neuroscience.
Every year, February 14 is celebrated as Valentine's Day all over the world.
Üsküdar University NPISTANBUL Hospital Neurology Specialist Prof. Dr. Sultan Tarlacı made important evaluations about the effects of love on the human brain.
All important works are created during the period of passionate love
"When you look at the world, every aesthetic production you see; a good architecture, a good painting, a good music, a good poem, a good movie... Dopamine underlies the production of everything that is passionate. Dopamine is a neurochemical substance based on the search for novelty, creativity and pleasure" said Prof. Dr. Sultan Tarlacı,
"It has been shown that the human brain is almost swimming in dopamine during passionate love. Therefore, all important love poems, all important music are always written during the period of soaking love."
Love rejuvenates the brain
Üsküdar University NPISTANBUL Hospital Neurology Specialist Prof. Dr. Sultan Tarlacı said, "Another known thing is that during the period of passionate love, a hormone called 'neuron growth factor', which grows nerve cells, is released from the brain. It decreases with age. It was observed that this neuron growth factor increased 2-3 times higher than normal in the blood of people measured during the love period."
"What does this provide? It is a hormone that enables nerve cells to survive longer, the connection between nerve cells to be more frequent over time and rejuvenation. When you put nerve cells in an artificial environment and give them this hormone, their structure becomes younger. The same happens in the brain. So love rejuvenates the brain.
Love reduces pain sensitivity
The release of morphine-like substances in the brain increases during the period of infatuation. This reduces sensitivity to pain. This is also true for this. When people are very happy, they feel less pain in their body. But for example, depressed patients feel a lot of pain. Their head hurts, their neck hurts, their back hurts, their waist hurts... Therefore, pain sensations also decrease during the period of soaking love."
How long does love last?
"Despite everything, love is an emotion that should be welcomed positively when it comes unexpectedly. But we should always think that it has a certain duration and that there will be a period of descent after it." Prof. Dr. Sultan Tarlacı said,
"There is no such thing as ultimate and lasting love. It has been shown in blood chemistry and psychological tests that these periods of head over heels love last 8 to 16-18 months at most. In very exceptional cases, there are people who live in passionate love for 20 years, but these are of course very extraordinary people."
Love can be visualized with functional MRI!
Prof. Dr. Tarlacı said the following about imaging love in the brain:
"Until the 1700s, people thought that the center that governed the human was the heart. After the 1700s, it was understood that the main center that governs the human being is the brain. In the modern era, the use of functional MRI in many areas since 2003 has aroused the curiosity of some neuroscientists. 'We see where the brain works while swallowing, reading a book, watching a movie. But what part of the brain works when a person looks at the person they love?" asked Egyptian scientist Semir Zeki. After asking this question, they found that, astonishingly, certain areas of the brain shine brightly when people in love are looking at their beloved, and this is something that is consistent. So there is no other pattern when one is in love, and no other pattern when the other is in love. There is a similar pattern in the glowing areas of the brain during the whole period of head over heels in love. There could be a test like this; 'Does my lover really love me passionately?'. It would probably take us half an hour to figure that out. Technologically we have this, we can do this because we have a functional MRI device."
Love slows down the brain's decision-making mechanism
"Human behavior all has a cerebral correlate. While many parts of the brain shine during the period of head-over-heels love, the frontal region of the brain works less or its functioning is weakened. This is a very remarkable thing," he said and concluded his words as follows:
"What is the result of this? Normally, our forehead brain region enables us to create social norms and rules. It allows us to get respect from others and to look at the whole and evaluate our situation. The same brain region allows you to signal long before turning right or left in traffic. This area is also involved in decision-making processes. When this region is underactive during the period of head over heels love, the decisions made during that period are unhealthy and problematic. Therefore, in that intense, passionate period, as they say later, 'How did I do this, how did I decide this, how did I go after him'... There are regrets after a while in love... Or 'He asked me this and that, how did I give it to him'... When the soaking love is over, the mind has come to its place. You know, 'Love comes and reason goes', that's how it is popularly said. Actually, this has a neuroscientific equivalent. Indeed, in the period of head over heels love, when love comes, the mind can go."
