20 Psychological Facts About Love

1. Eye contact is key.

Some extraordinary research has found that couples who are in love and bond in a romantic relationship synchronize their heart rates after gazing into each others’ eyes for three minutes.

2. Love works fast.

It only It takes up to 4 minutes to decide whether you like someone or not.

3. Love can be addictive.

Falling in love is much like taking a dose of cocaine, as both experiences affect the brain similarly and trigger a similar sensation of euphoria.

Research found that falling in love produces several euphoria-inducing chemicals that stimulate 12 areas of the brain at the same time.

4. Your heart can actually break.

Research has provided evidence that intense, traumatizing events, such as a break-up, divorce, loss of a loved one, physical separation from a loved one, or betrayal can cause real physical pains in the area of one’s heart. This condition is called the Broken Heart Syndrome.

5.Biologically, your love changes with time.

It is estimated that romantic love, which is linked with euphoria, dependence, sweaty palms, butterflies and alike, only lasts about a year. After that first year begins the so-called “committed love” stage. The transition is linked with elevated neurotrophin protein levels in newly formed couples.

6. Love goes hand in hand with stress.

Studies show that people at an early stage of love have lower levels of serotonin, which is associated with feelings of happiness and well-being, and higher levels of cortisol, associated with stress.

7. Priorities change when looking for a long term companion.

There’s evidence that when looking for a fling, the body wins over the face on a physical attraction basis. The opposite is true, however, for those who are looking for a long-term relationship partner.

8. Feelings make life that much sweeter.

Researchers looked at a group of people, and found that those who were thinking about love said a specific kind of food was sweeter than those thinking about jealousy or something neutral.

9. Some people can’t feel love.

Some individuals who claim never to have felt romantic love suffer from hypopituitarism, a rare disease that doesn’t allow a person to feel the rapture of love.

10. Your body has a “vein of love.”

Engagement rings are often worn on the fourth finger of the left hand because the ancient Greeks maintained that that finger contains the vena amoris, or the “vein of love,” that runs straight to the heart.

11. Add a little adventure to your life.

Studies show that if a man meets a woman in a dangerous situation (and vice versa), such as on a trembling bridge, he is more likely to fall in love with her than if he met her in a more mundane setting, such as in an office.

12. Sometimes, timing really is everything.

Timing significantly influences love. Individuals are more likely to fall in love if they are looking for adventure, craving to leave home, lonely, displaced in a foreign country, passing into a new stage of life, or financially and psychologically ready to share themselves or start a family.

13. Women like testosterone.

Women around the world is more likely to fall in love with partners with ambition, education, wealth, respect, status, a sense of humor, and who are taller than they are. Women also prefer distinctive cheekbones and a strong jawbone, which are linked to testosterone levels.

14. Eye contact is key.

Scientists suggest that merely staring into another person’s eyes is a strong precursor to love. In an experiment, strangers of the opposite sex were put in a room together for 90 minutes where they talked about intimate details and then stared into each other’s eyes without talking. Many felt a deep attraction for each other, and two married each other six months later.

15. The attraction is evolutionary.

Men in love show more activity in the visual part of the brain, while women in love show more activity in the part of the brain that governs memory. Scientists speculate that men have to size up a woman visually to see if she can bear babies, while women have to remember aspects of man’s behavior to determine if he would be an adequate provider.

16. Slow and steady wins the race.

The longer and more deliberate a courtship, the better the prospects for a long marriage. People who have intense, Hollywood-type romances at the beginning are more likely to divorce.

17. Men and women feel love differently.

Women often feel loved when talking face to face with their partner; men, on the other hand, often feel emotionally close when they work, play, or talk side by side.

18. Love is a journey.

Scientists suggest that most people will fall in love approximately seven times before marriage.

19. Love & sex influences us differently.

Research has shown that thinking of love influences creativity and abstract thoughts, as well as long-term planning. Thinking of sex however,

influences immediate decision making and attention to momentary details.

20.Kissing extends your lifespan.

Men who kiss their wives in the morning are thought to live up to 5 years longer.