Love hits like cocaine

Falling in love affects intellectual areas of the brain and triggers the same sensation of euphoria experienced by people when they take cocaine, researchers from Syracuse University reveal in an article in Journal of Sexual Medicine. The study, called "The Neuroimaging of Love" found that several euphoria-inducing chemicals, such as vasopression, adrenaline, oxytocin and dopamine are released in 12 areas of the brain that work simultaneously. The authors also reveal that falling in love can occur in a fifth of a second.

So, is love linked to the brain or the heart?

According to Professor Stephanie Ortigue “That's a tricky question always. I would say the brain, but the heart is also related because the complex concept of love is formed by both bottom-up and top-down processes from the brain to the heart and vice versa. For instance, activation in some parts of the brain can generate stimulations to the heart, butterflies in the stomach. Some symptoms we sometimes feel as a manifestation of the heart may sometimes be coming from the brain.”

The scientists also found that when couples had just fallen in love, their blood levels of NGF (nerve growth factor) had gone up. NGF is a molecule that is key in human social chemistry, and in "love at first sight". Ortigue believes their findings confirm that love does have a scientific basis.

When a love affair goes wrong, or when it ends, there is a significant risk of depression and emotional distress for at least one of the partners. The authors say that this study has revealed facts that could have implications for mental health and neuroscience research.

Ortigue said: It's another probe into the brain and into the mind of a patient. By understanding why they fall in love and why they are so heartbroken, they can use new therapies.

If we can identify which parts of the brain are activated and stimulated by love, clinicians and therapists might have a deeper understanding of what is going on when treating a love-sick patient, the authors believe.

We know there are various types of love, and it appears that different parts of the brain are affected depending on what type of love there is. The love between a mother and her offspring, for example, what we call unconditional love is generated by the common and different brain areas, which includes the middle of the brain. The reward part of the brain is stimulated when passionate love is involved, as well as associative cognitive areas of the brain which deal with higher thought functions, such as body image. The Syracuse University team worked with researchers from West Virginia University as well as Geneva University Psychiatric Center, Switzerland.

by: Abiyoso

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WORLD HEALTH DAY

Pada hari Sabtu, 8 Februari 2014, kami, divisi Community Outreach AMSA UPH, mengadakan acara dengan tema “Voice of AWEtism” untuk memperingati World Health Day. Acara ini bertempat di Yayasan Sayap Ibu Orphanage, Bintaro, Tangerang Selatan. Sebelum hari H, kami sebagai panitia mengadakan kampanye kesehatan dengan tujuan memberi informasi ke masyarakat tentang anak dengan autisme di Indonesia serta sebagai tanda dukungan acara kita. Dalam kampanye ini, panitia mengumpulkan tanda tangan dan juga membagikan flyer dan bookmark.

Tujuan acara kami dengan tema utama Autism Spectrum Disorder adalah untuk memberi pengetahuan kepada orang tua yang memiliki anak autisme dan juga pengurus panti tentang asupan gizi, kebersihan dan cara mengeksplorasi bakat-bakat anak autisme. 

Setelah melakukan registrasi, anak-anak bermain dan membuat kerajinan tangan origami bersama panita-panitia, sementara itu, diruangan lain, orangtua dari anak-anak autisme tersebut menyaksikan seminar yang dibawakan oleh dr. Engelberta Perdamean, SpKJ.

Setelah seminar selesai, panitia mengadakan penyuluhan untuk mengajarkan tentang cara menyikat gigi dan mencuci tangan yang benar kepada anak-anak autisme. Acara terakhir diisi dengan bermain clay atau lilin plastisin bersama orangtua, anak-anak autisme, dan panitia. Hal ini bertujuan agar keterampilan anak-anak dapat terasah. Sekitar pukul 12 siang, acara selesai dan ditutup dengan serah terima plakat kepada kepala panti. 

foto bersama orangtua, anak-anak, dan panitia

by: Christine Qws

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There's a drug that can let you stay up for 48 hours with no side effects!

It's called Modafinil and it's in a class of drugs called eugeroics. It's a stimulant in the same vein as caffeine and adenosine, but the difference in how it works the brain means it doesn't have the same side-effects that the others do. 

The way caffeine and Adenosine work is that they block certain receptors in the brain that react to dopamine, which makes it slow down. This means, for example, that coffee does not give you energy, but rather, doesn’t let the brain realize it needs more energy. This is why people crash after caffeine. The effect goes away and all the tiredness catches up to you. Modafinil doesn't have that problem.

No one really knows how it works yet, but it seems that instead of blocking the brain's dopamine processing, it just slows production of dopamine. On top of that, it also prevents the re-uptake of another neurotransmitter called noradrenaline, which triggers sleep.

The end result, and one of the most mysterious, is that modafinil doesn't trigger sleep debt. People who stay awake for a day or two on modafinil don't report a need to catch up on sleep after the effect wears off. They can sleep the normal amount!

by: V. Levana

further more: http://science.howstuffworks.com/life/sleep-is-so-last-year.htm