Love is All We Need 爱情大补帖

Many songs, poems, and books have been written on love’s strong effect on people. The state of being in love has even been compared to being sick or insane. A study by Professor Semir Zeki of University College London has found that love does affect people’s brains—by making them feel great.

Zeki studied young men and women who had recently fallen in love. He found that, when they were looking at photos of their loved ones, there was heightened activity in four areas of their brains. These areas deal with emotions, and one of them, in particular, is known to respond to drugs that cause feelings of euphoria.

Interestingly, the study also found a lack of activity in two other areas of the brain when the volunteers looked at their lovers’ photographs. One of these areas is linked to feelings of sadness, while the other is often active in people suffering from depression. It seems love really can be uplifting.

The state of being in love, according to some scientists, may actually be good for your health. Although scientists know that being in love can make a person feel great, the precise influence of love on a person’s health is harder to determine. However, scientists say that people do need love in order to live healthy lives.

According to Dr. Thomas Lewis, people need to be in relationships because that is how we are designed. He says the brain can only maintain the overall stability of a person’s immune system, bodily rhythms, and heart if it receives input from outside the body in the form of emotional connections with others.

Professor Antonio Damasio has a similar view. He says that love nourishes a person’s imagination and creativity, and makes a person’s body work better. He also believes that love can even improve the body’s ability to fight disease. Damasio’s wise words of advice are: “Choose love and you will live longer.”

许多歌曲、诗歌和书籍都描写了爱情对人的强烈影响。处在恋爱中的状态甚至被比拟成生病或发疯。伦敦大学学院(University College London)塞米尔·札奇教授的一项研究发现，爱情的确会影响人类的大脑—让他们感觉棒极了。

札奇以近期陷入爱情的年轻男女为研究对象。他发现，当他们看着恋人的照片时，大脑中有四个区域的活动力会增强。这些区域与人们的情感相关，特别其中的一个区域据悉会对引发极度兴奋感的毒品产生反应。

有趣的是，这项研究同时发现，在志愿者观看恋人的照片时，大脑中有其它两个区域是不活动的。其中一个区域与悲伤的感觉有关，在罹患忧郁症的人身上另一个区域则经常活跃。由此看来，爱情似乎真的能使人精神振奋。

根据某些科学家的说法，处在恋爱的状态或许真的对健康有益。虽然科学家知道恋爱使人感觉棒极了，爱情对于一个人健康的精确影响却比较难以测定。不过，科学家表示，为了过健康的生活，人的确需要爱情。

根据托马斯·利瓦伊斯博士的观点，人需要维持与他人的某种情感关系，是因为我们先天就是这样被设计出来的。他说，大脑只有从体外接收到与他人情感联系信息的时候，才能维持一个人免疫系统、机体节奏和心脏整体的稳定性。

安东尼奥·达玛西欧教授也持类似的看法。他说爱情可以丰富人的想象力与创造力，而且可以使人的身体运作得更好。他也相信爱情甚至可以增强身体对疾病的抵抗力。达玛西欧明智的建议是：“选择爱情，你会活得更久。”