Trust science to take something as marvellous and mysterious as love and reduce it to chemical reactions and sensory impulses. In the latest study they confirm for us that love is truly blind, and it is not merely just a saying. Turns out that love induces several glitches in your brain that compromise your ability to be a keen judge of person. Don’t believe us? Well ask science.
Researchers of University College London have proved that love can completely overpower those areas of the brain that control critical thought. They have also found that when you get close to someone, the brain does not analyse the person’s character and personality as critically as it would otherwise.
The study was conducted on 20 young moms and it was found that any form of love produces similar effects of blindness.
The research team evaluated the brains of 20 young mothers as they saw the pictures of their own children, other children they were acquainted with, and their adult friends. The team revealed that the patterns of brain activity of these 20 women were very similar to other women, identified in an earlier study looking at the effects of romantic love.
Researchers also found that the area of the brain that makes negative judgements showed a startling reduction in levels of activity when people are in love.
And the same area reacted with feelings of euphoria when it was instigated with food, beverages, and monetary gain.
The study showed that love – sexual and maternal alike – is able to trigger the same effect as blindness on our brain. These feelings subdue the ability to critically assess someone and understand negative emotions.
But sexual arousal is confined solely to romantic feelings.
In the course of the study it was found that the sole disparity between romantic feelings and maternal feelings was that only the former showed escalated activity in the hypothalamus, which is connected with feelings of arousal.
Researchers have said that the power of love is motivating and exhilarating.
Lead researcher Dr Andreas Bartels said: “Our research enables us to conclude that human attachment employs a push-pull mechanism that overcomes social distance by deactivating networks… explaining the power of love to motivate and exhilarate.”