A new research has shown that physical pain and intense emotional like that of rejection hurts in a similar way by activating the same ‘pain’ pathways in the brain.
A new research has shown
that physical pain and intense emotional like that of rejection hurts in a
similar way by activating the same ‘pain’ pathways in the brain.
Researchers studied about 40 people
who had experienced an unwanted romantic breakup in the past 6-months. Every
participant claimed to feel rejected whenever they thought about their breakup.
The brain activity in the participants when they watched the photo of their
ex-love and when they held a hot cup of coffee was analyzed with the help of
functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). It was seen that in both the
situations the secondary somato sensory cortex and the dorsal posterior insula
regions of the brain were activated. Previous studies have shown activation of
these areas during physical pain.
Researchers say that the findings
might offer a new insight into how social rejection might lead to various
physical pain symptoms and disorders. The study has been published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of
Sciences.
Source-Medindia