The Biology of Love

Now that we know that love is long lasting, how does one fall in love in the first place? What goes on in the brain when it’s in love?

According to biologist Dawn Maslar 3 , men and women tend to fall in love at different times due to the presence of distinct neurotransmitters, specifically oxytocin in women and vasopressin in men. In a study, she analyzed on prairie voles (another monogamous mammal) the data showed that for women, levels of oxytocin shot up at orgasm and for men, vasopressin takes time to increase naturally as receptors build up and commitment increases. Maslar concluded her research saying that women tend to fall in love after sex whereas men tend to experience these “love feelings” after time and as commitment intensifies.

Sex…
The biological perspective on love seems very cold and clinical to the outside observer. Can love really be broken down into a few hormones being activated in the brain? Is love simply an unnecessary consequence of our biological need to pass on our genes? To answer this question, I looked at two separate studies regarding happiness and sexual satisfaction in both fertile 4 and infertile 5 populations. This distinction is interesting because it helps to eliminate the cofounding variable of our evolutionary need to continue our genetic lineage. Both studies depicted that sexual satisfaction was an important factor in positive affect for both groups, thus ruling out evolutionary factors as a possible confounding variable.

If there is anything that I have learned from observing my parent’s relationship, it is to take risks, and fall in love, because it might just be the healthiest thing you could ever do.

source http://tasboy.com/the-biology-of-love-2/