That Old Black Magic...or is it just a biochemical reaction?

What's Love Got To Do With It?



      Well, if you were to ask famous musician Tina Turner, she'd tell you "love is just a second hand emotion".   What is love? Why does it make us act like complete baboons and like we've sniffed too much glue?  Seriously, is love a genuine "feeling" or just a series of chemical reactions to another individual's pheromones and body language? How can we determine if it's love, lust or infatuation? Will it last?

    

      Larry Young is a scientist at Yerkes National Primate Research Center in Atlanta. In January of 2009 he wrote an article that suggests scientists "may soon be able to tie the emotion 'love' to a biochemical chain of events." (PBS)  He further implies there may be a way to develop social enhancing drugs and compares it to the drugs used in depression and anxiety.  It's definitely not a love potion but could be very beneficial for patients who need help in social settings such as people who suffer from autism. (PBS)







My son Victor

     Let's take a look at what chemicals are being discussed.  Pheromones. Oxytocin, Vasopresson, Dopamine.  The FEEL GOOD chemicals.  Oxytocin is the chemical involved in bonding such as a mother bonding with her newborn child.  It increases our eye gaze and raises our awareness of other people's emotions. It is what gives us the "trusting" feeling.  An interesting fact is that in a recent study, women who were abused or neglected early in life have decreased levels of oxytocin.  This would explain why they may not be as nurturing or trusting. 

      Dr. Helen Fisher, PhD of Rutgers University published a study in 2002 about the chemical reactions on the brains of people in love. "Dr Fisher divides love into three categories involving different brain systems: 1) Lust (the craving for sexual gratification), driven by androgens and estrogens; 2) Attraction (or romantic or passionate love, characterized by euphoria when things are going well, terrible mood swings when they’re not, focused attention, obsessive thinking, and intense craving for the individual), driven by high dopamine and norepinephrine levels and low serotonin; and 3) Attachment (the sense of calm, peace, and stability one feels with a long-term partner) driven by the hormones oxytocin and vasopressin." (McNamany 2011).

     Scientists are looking into creating different drugs with these various chemicals.  To me this raises all types of concerns.  What if it was used to gain trust of young girls or used to seduce someone....there are many scenarios where this could be very detrimental.  I can sort of understand using oxytocin in cases of therapy for abused women to help them overcome their fears, but only under the supervision of a trusted physician.
   I will be researching this topic in much greater detail but now I really am wondering what love has to do with it???



Winerman, Lea. “Love is a Chemical Reaction, Scientists Find”. 2009. PBS Online NewsHour.

Retrieved on 17 April 2011 from: http://www.pbs.org/newshour/updates/science/jan-june09/love_02-13.html

This is an article discussing the findings of a study by Dr. Larry Young, a neuroscientist. He studies at Yerkes National Primate Research Center at Emory University in Alabama.  Young did several studies using voles and the effects that injecting them with various chemicals such as oxytocin had. 

Ghosh, Pallab. “Is love just a chemical cocktail?” BBC News online. 2009. Retrieved

On 15 April 2011 from: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7815095.stm

This link is to another story referencing the study by Dr. Young.  Also quoted is Professor Nick Bostrom of Oxford University.  The main discussion here is the ability to create a drug containing specific chemicals and pheromones to create the feeling of love.  Also discussed is the option of creating an antidote as well if you fall for the wrong person.

Fisher, Helen. “I get a kick out of you”. 2004. Oxycotin.org online. Retrieved on 17 April, 2011

            from: http://www.oxytocin.org/oxytoc/love-science.html

            This is a link with an excerpt from the Economist quoting from oxytocin.org. The researcher Helen Fisher is from Rutgers University.  Here she discusses three main stages of love: Lust, Romantic love and Long-term attachment.  Also discussed is the comparison of the “love” chemicals, oxytocin and vasopressin to that of addictive drugs such as cocaine.

Elsevier. "Oxytocin: Love Potion #1? Human Hormone Increases Positive

Communication Between Couples." ScienceDaily, 3 May 2009. Retrieved on 17

April 2011 from:

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/04/090429091232.htm

This is a link to sciencedaily.com that discusses the positive communication between couples when given amounts of oxytocin vs. placebo.  Information obtained from Swiss researchers published in Biological Psychiatry discusses the effects of the hormone on human couples.  Doctor’s do make sure to note however that there needs to be extensive research still and express concerns of the development of a drug that could lead to social enhancement abuse.

McManamy, John. “The Brain in Love and Lust: Your second-favorite Organ may be the key

player” 2011. Retrieved on 17 April 2011 from: http://www.mcmanweb.com/love_lust.html

This is a link to an article by John McManamy who is an ”award-winning mental health journalist and author”.  He reviews studies by Dr. Helen Fisher and several of her colleagues from a study on the biochemistry of love.  Discussed here are the effects not only of oxytocin and vasopressin as love stimulators but also how dopamine and norepinephrine can interfere with those as well, therefore causing the highs and lows of being in love.

Blum, Deborah. “The Plunge of Pleasure”. 1997. Retrieved on April 28, 2011 from:

http://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/200909/the-plunge-pleasure

            This is a link to an article in Psychology Today. It covers some of the facts found in Dr. Fisher’s research on the effects of dopamine in human emotions and feelings.  Here the author discusses the chemicals responsible for the feel-good feelings such as infatuation, new love, joy, self-confidence and motivation.

http://www.syr.edu/news/articles/2010/ortigue-neuroimaging-of-love-10-10.html

http://www.oregonlive.com/news/index.ssf/2009/02/falling_in_love_its_all_about.html

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/what-the-wild-things-are/201008/dopamine-why-its-so-hard-just-say-no



Are we afraid to discipline our children?

Why are American parent’s today more afraid or less likely to discipline their children out in public than they were when I was a child?  I was born in 1970 and had a brother four years older than me. I remember when we were kids out in public at a store, if we acted up or if we were disobedient, we were punished for it right then and there.  My mother did not hesitate to scold us either verbally or give us a spanking no matter who was around.  Now being a mother of three children myself, I notice going out in the stores or somewhere, that children are running rampant, screaming and whining and the parents seem indifferent or anxious at their children’s behavior, some almost pleading with their toddler to maintain control.  I want to know why it is different now from the way it was then.  It is a big topic to cover in one post but I wanted to give some food for thought and discuss the route I would take to get some answers.

           I believe psychology would be a good place to start because first of all we have to understand the reason why parents do or do not react to their child’s undesirable behavior.  What motivates a parent to discipline a child?  Is it a natural instinct such as when they are about to do something harmful and we are trying to protect them?  Are we embarrassed because a child causes a scene and we feel others may think of us as a bad parent?  What is different about the views parents have today than they were thirty years ago?  Does sex of the parent play a vital role?   What is considered the norm?  It was normally the mother who took care of the child and the father went to work away from the home.  Today more fathers are staying at home while the mother goes to work?  I would look at history in the past thirty years.  What changes in life and environment have occurred in this time frame? 

The first way to approach the subject from a psychological point of view would be to start a collection of data from parents in the 1970’s to parents of today.  It would be necessary to perform interviews and questionnaires of great length to obtain necessary information.  One would need to look at studies already done on basic human reaction to emotional stimulus.  It would be necessary to study the educational system.  What are we learning in the social sciences about parenting that has taught us what was wrong and right from thirty years ago? 

We would also need to look at the economic factor and determine by research to find out if parent’s from the 1970’s had less of an education that parent’s from today because of lower income levels? 

            Looking back at the history from then to now would also give perspective on the question.  What has changed in the role of the parent and acceptable forms of discipline?  Today we see more cases of reported child abuse and stronger punishment for those committing these crimes?  Are parents now concerned that if they are seen disciplining their child in public that an observer may consider this a form of child abuse?  I know of a teenager who was not getting his way and threatened his mother that he was going to call the local authorities and say she was beating him.  This was something I observed first hand. 

There are many factors to be considered to finding out why American parents do not seem to control or discipline their children out in public as strongly as they did when I was a child thirty years ago.  It would take a look at a psychological perspective, to find out what makes us act the way we do.  We would need to look at what was considered socially acceptable then as compared to now.  What changes have happened in our economy and history to cause the decline in public scolding?  Are parents today more afraid of the reactions of others or are they more concerned with the long term effects stricter discipline will have on the child.

http://familyrightsassociation.com/info/spanking_laws.htm

http://www.redlasso.com/ClipPlayer.aspx?id=0a0e7299-0c55-4a69-b242-e0a510fcf191