Love: A Chemical Explosion in Your Brain (You must be kidding me!)

In the United States, February 14 is Valentine’s Day - a day to celebrate lovers and loving relationships. Images of red hearts are everywhere. Lovers say nice things to each other.

After all, many cultures view a big, beautiful, red heart as the traditional sign of love.

But maybe it shouldn’t be. Maybe the sign of love should be a big, soft, gray brain.

Over the years, research has shown that love affects the brain in many ways and in a number of areas. Psychology Today magazine’s online blog looked at some studies and noted the results.

The magazine reports that these love studies note something similar: that a brain on love looks a lot like a brain on drugs.

In 2010, researchers at Syracuse University in New York state worked with other scientists in West Virginia and Switzerland.

Syracuse professor Stephanie Ortigue led the study. She and her team found that falling in love created the same "euphoric feelings as using cocaine." They found that 12 areas of the brain work in tandem to release chemicals that cause such feelings.

So, if you celebrate Valentine’s Day remember that your feelings of love are really a complicated chemical reaction happening in your brain.

However, if your partner isn’t interested in science, maybe keep the science to yourself and instead give them a gift of flowers or chocolate on Valentine’s Day.

From VOA Learning English, this is the Health & Lifestyle report.