Putting feelings into words makes sadness and anger less intense, U.S. brain researchers said on Wednesday, in a finding that explains why talking to a therapist(1) -- or even a sympathetic(2) bartender -- often makes people feel better.

They said talking about negative feelings activates a part of the brain responsible for impulse control.

"This region of the brain seems to be involved in putting on the brakes(3)," said University of California, Los Angeles researcher Matthew Lieberman.

He and colleagues scanned the brains of 30 people -- 18 women and 12 men between 18 and 36 -- who were shown pictures of faces expressing strong emotions.

They were asked to categorize(4) the feelings in words like sad or angry, or to choose between two gender-specific names like "Sally or Harry" that matched the face.

What they found is that when people attached a word like angry to an angry-looking face, the response in the amygdale(5) portion of the brain that handles fear, panic and other strong emotions decreased.

"This seems to dampen(6) down the response in these basic emotional circuits in the brain -- in this case the amygdala," Lieberman said in a telephone interview.

What lights up instead is the right ventrolateral(7) prefrontal(8) cortex(9), part of the brain that controls impulses.

"This is the only region of the entire brain that is more active when you choose an emotion word for the picture than when you choose a name for the picture," he said.

He said the same region of the brain has been found in prior studies to play a role in motor control.

"If you are driving along and you see a yellow light, you have to inhibit one response in order to step on the brake," he said. "This same region helps to inhibit emotional responses as well."

The researchers did not find significant differences along gender lines, but Lieberman said prior studies have hinted at some differences in the benefits men and women derive from talking about their feelings.

"Women may do more of this spontaneously(10), but when men are instructed to do it, they may get more benefit from it," he said.

周三，美国大脑科学家称：将悲伤和愤怒转化成语言人就会感觉好很多。此发现能解释为什么当人们和心理医生、甚至是有共鸣的酒吧招待诉说心里话后心情会舒畅些。

科学家说谈心能够刺激大脑中负责控制冲动的部分。

加利福尼亚大学洛杉矶研究员Matthew Lieberman说：“大脑的这一部分似乎能够停止某些脑部活动。”

他和同事们让18到36岁间的18名女子和12名男子分别观看面部照片，并用语言描述出这些面部情绪，同时对他们进行脑部扫描。

受测者要用“难过”或者“生气”这两个词来描述不同照片，或者用性别特点分明的“Sally”或“Harry”来描述。

科学家发现，当人们看着愤怒表情说“生气”一词时，他们脑中负责恐惧、惊慌和其他强烈情绪的扁桃体状物质的反应便会降低。

Lieberman在电话采访中说：“语言似乎能压制大脑的这些基本情绪通路的反应—在这里是指扁桃体状物质”。

相对的，大脑中负责冲动的右外腹前额皮层会变得活跃。

当人们为图片选择一个情绪词汇时，右外腹前额皮层是唯一一个比选择人名时活跃的脑部区域。

他说在此前的研究中发现，此区域还负责动作控制。

他说：“如果开车时看到黄灯，你必须作出反应踩刹车。此区域同样可以反应阻止某些情绪”。

研究人员称并为发现男女在此有区别，但是Lieberman说之前的研究曾显示谈心对于男女来说是不一样的。

“女人本能地谈心，男人则往往是被提示才会谈心，但是一旦男人开始谈，他们能比女人得到更多的释放感”。