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International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research, Volume 5, Issue 4, April-2014 1317

ISSN 2229-5518

The Chemistry of Love

Y. Patil,



Abstract: In this era of hate and lust, it would be interesting to know about the chemistry behind love. The boundary line between love and lust is very
thin. To protect you from committing the misbehavior in the society culture and customs play a vital role no doubt, but it seems to the author that
knowledge of the chemistry behind love would also be helpful to behave in society. Indeed there exist biochemical activities behind every human behav-
ior. The whim, the logic, the act, the feeling everything has got involved a biochemical change pertaining to culture, circumstances and personality of
every individual.

Keywords: Lust, Attraction, Attachment, Oxytocin, Dopamine, norepinephrine, adrenaline

* Author Email for correspondence:


try--it's what's behind those sweaty palms, the jumpy stomach,
thumping heart, and nervous jitters. Chemistry also contributes
N this highly civilized society, so far, it is accepted that war is

to that warm, comfortable feeling you get from being with a
not the solution over the quest of conquering the others but the longtime partner.
dialogue, and so is the love rolling all the negativity away from The following text elaborates the role of Chemistry behind love
the life. However, the speedy lifestyle and technological devel- and the precautions to be followed in the love laboratory i.e.
opment already have taken its toll by stealing the satisfaction life.
from the life of modern human beings up to considerable level.
The social transformation taking place drastically due to global- All in the chemical family
ization has given birth to the new problems like homosexuality We all have chemical families associated with dopamine, ser-
and the gay relationships. Humans are coming closer than earli- otonin, testosterone, and estrogen. People choose partners with
er and the relationships are becoming complex. Due to recent chemicals that complement their own. For example, a person
developments in information technology the humans from dis- with a high amount of estrogen may be attracted to a high-
tant regions could communicate with each other and most of testosterone type.
the time the communication is observed to be taking place for Psychology plays a role, too. Our choice of a mate is partly dic-
appreciations. At the same time the poverty in society and the tated by a love map, an unconscious list of traits we want in
associated problems are surfacing vigorously. The ways pro- an ideal partner that we construct during our childhood. We get
vided to outburst the envy and the anger through the sophisti- used to our fathers sense of humor or our mothers brand of
cated way of sports, like Olympics and cricket, football are affection and use this to build our list. When we meet a poten-
found to be effective. To balance the negativity in the nature the tial partner, we consciously and unconsciously determine if that
love is in existence since the life is on this earth surface. Even by person is right for us. We often do this in less than three
the social scientists and the human behavior scientists like minutes, Fisher says.
Maslow the need of to love and being loved is proclaimed for
the healthy society. The science of love
Love is a wonderful phenomenon that almost everyone can And when it comes to sniffing around for love, you may have
relate to despite the challenging, perhaps even impossible task more in common with Fido than you think. Martie Haselton,
of defining it or describing its many different interpretations PhD, with the communication studies and psychology depart-
and implications. Curiously, the multi-dimensional construct of ments at the University of California, Los Angeles, has been
love leaves many of us with pressing questions, one of which studying major histocompatibility complex, or MHC, a set of
involves the obvious notion that love must somehow be influ- genes involved in immunity that might play a role in mating by
enced by internal mechanisms, but which ones and how? Logi- way of our sense of smell.
cally, it has been stated that love functions biologically to ensure People rate the body odors of people with MHC genes dissimi-
the survival of a species through social attachment and repro- lar from their own as more attractive, Haselton says. Also, re-
duction, so it is no surprise that science has found great interest search shows that children who inherit different MHC from
in explaining the biology behind love. When sparks fly between each of their parents have broader immunity.
two people, we're quick to say they have "chemistry." Not eve-
ryone realizes that such couples literally have do have chemis-
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If its all chemical, do we have any control over the process?

Researchers say you can trigger your bodys chemistry to keep
love alive by:
-Keeping it fresh Novelty drives up dopamine in the brain,
this can help sustain romantic love. Go to the movies in a differ-
ent part of town or head out for the evening without knowing
where youll end up.
-Keeping in touch Any kind of touching, such as holding
hands or playing footsie, can drive up oxytocin. Sometimes
called the hormone of love, oxytocin is associated with attach-
-Keeping it happening Creating interests in day to day activ-
ities by adopting innovative ways of love making. If youve
gotten out of the habit, work on getting back into it -- even if
you need to seek professional help.
The most well-known love-related chemical is phenylethyla-
mine -- or "PEA" -- a naturally occurring trace ammine in the
brain. PEA is a natural amphetamine, like the drug, and can
cause similar stimulation. This natural upper contributes to that
kick-up-your-heels, on-top-of-the-world feeling that attraction There are three stages of love: lust, attraction, and attachment.
can bring, and gives you the energy to stay up all night talking Each stage is driven by a set of different hormones and chemi-
to a new love. Sometimes this energy translates into the triple- cals. Lust, the first stage of love, is driven by the sex hormones
espresso jitters; other times it simply keeps you wide-eyed and testosterone and estrogen. From puberty onward, the amount of

alert long past the time when you'd usually be yawning. testosterone and estrogen released increases immensely. The
testosterone level in a teenage boys body is the same level as an
Feeling Dopey adults after drinking four to five shots of strong liquor. The
You can also get a non-romantic dose of PEA from high- feeling of lust is caused by the bodys production of testosterone
intensity activities like skydiving, or by eating chocolate. Ac- and estrogen, which peaks from puberty onward.
cording to, chocolate contains small amounts of
our love drug, PEA. That might be why some people use choco- The next stage of love is attraction, when one can focus on little
late as "comfort food," getting the same warm, relaxed feeling or nothing else other than the person he or she is attracted to.
from chocolate as others do from Mom's chicken soup. This stage is a result of a process under three neurotransmitters:
dopamine, norepinephrine and serotonin. Norepinephrine is
One of the substances released by PEA is the neurochemical similar to adrenaline, which causes effects like a racing heart,
dopamine. A recent study done at Emory University shows that sweaty palms, and flushed skin. Sound familiar? Yes, this is
female vole (small rodents) choose their mates in response to what happens when a person unexpectedly bumps into his or
dopamine being released in their brains. When injected with her new crush. Besides norepinephrine, dopamine plays an im-
dopamine in a male vole's presence, the female will pick him portant role in the attraction stage. Dopamine is thought to be
out of a crowd later. Our love food, chocolate, also elevates lev- the pleasure chemical that produces the feeling of bliss. Re-
els of dopamine in the brain. searchers have used functional magnetic resonance imaging
Figure: Schematic presentation for different parts of brain (fMRI) to observe peoples brains when they are looking at a
which remains activated during activity of love picture of their object of affection. The scans showed increased
blood flow in areas concentrated with dopamine receptors,
In turn, Dopamine stimulates the production of oxytocin, some- which are associated with states of euphoria, craving, and ad-
times known as "the cuddle chemical." Oxytocin is best known diction.
for its role in mothering, stimulating contractions during labor
and aiding with breast feeding. According to BirthPsycholo- Together, the combination of norepinephrine with dopamine scientists now think that both genders release this nur- produces elation, intense energy, sleeplessness, loss of attention,
turing hormone when touching and cuddling, with the oxytocin and exquisite delight from small details.
level peaking during orgasm.
The third stage of love is attachment. This stage allows a couple
Another euphoria-inducing chemical in your brain, norepi- to bond for a longer period of time. Two important chemicals
nephrine, stimulates the production of adrenaline and makes that are responsible for this stage are oxytocin and vasopressin.
your blood pressure soar when near the person you're attracted According to researchers at University of California, San Fran-
to. That's why you might experience a pounding heart or cisco, the hormone oxytocin has been shown to be associated
sweaty palms when you see someone you've got the hots for. with the ability to maintain healthy interpersonal relationships
and healthy psychological boundaries with other people. Vas-
opressin, an anti-diuretic hormone, is another chemical that has
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ISSN 2229-5518

an effect on long-term relationships. It is believed that oxytocin nings Marilyn Monroe's classic film "The Seven Year Itch"
and vasopressin interrupt the dopamine and norepinephrine should be retitled 'The Four Year Itch."
pathways, which is a possible explanation of why passionate Lynn Harris, co-creator of wonders if it's the
love fades as attachment grows within a couple. other way around. "Relationships take work. They just do. And
people get lazy after a while," she says. "So do they get lazy be-
What The Brain Tells the Body cause they're getting immune to the chemicals, or do they get
How do our emotions get translated into physical sensations? A lazy because they just do...which triggers a decline in the chemi-
U.S. News and World Report article explains the importance of cals?"
the vagus, a nerve that threads through your whole body. It
transports signals from your brain to your organs, "setting the In the end, even hard-core scientists agree that chemistry isn't
heart pounding, making the stomach do flip-flops, and of everything. Culture, circumstances, personality, and scores of
course, lighting the loins on fire." Everyone knows that jumpy, other variables help decide who turns your head and who
sort of sick feeling in your stomach. leaves you cold. So don't try to reproduce that lovin' feeling in a
Tennov's group also reported "intrusive thinking," where it basement chemistry lab--but do try your best to enjoy the natu-
seems like your brain is fixated on the object of your affection. ral highs that life gives you.
When your heart rules your head, there's actually one part of
your brain running the other: the cortex is the area of your brain Acknowledgement: The author is thankful to all the lovers
that controls logical thinking, while emotions are processed by worldwide, as they keep the love-vine growing continuously.
the limbic system. When too many happy chemicals like PEA Also the authors whose literature is referred to cast this article
and dopamine flood your brain, they head straight for the lim- are acknowledged humbly.
bic system.
[1] Maslow A.H. (1943). A theory of human motivation. Psychological Review,
When The Honeymoon's Over

50(4), 37096.
Some scientists believe that after a certain period, from 18 [2] Doheny, Kathleen. (2008). Love on the brain. From Web MD Special Report:
months to 4 years, one's body gets used to these love stimulants. [3]
After building up a tolerance to uppers like PEA, passionate [4] Esch, Tobias, Stefano, George B. (2005). Neurobiology of love. From Neuro-
romances can cool into what Helen Fisher, author of "Anatomy endocrinology Letters:
of Love" calls "attachment." In this phase of the relationship, [5]
your brain produces endorphins, brain opiates more like mor- [6] Fisher, Helen. (2004). Your brain in love. From Time Magazine:
phine than speed. "Unlike PEA," says Fisher, "they calm the,8816,993160,00.html
mind, kill pain, and reduce anxiety." So what some people call [7] McManamy, John. (2008). The Brain in love and lust.
"separation anxiety" might actually be a form of drug with-
drawal. [8] Zeki, S. (2007). The Neurobiology of love. From FEBS Letters:
The idea that the "honeymoon period" of a relationship is fueled [10] Links:
by different brain chemistry than what is present during the [1]
mellower years that come later might explain why some people love?page=2
can't seem to hold long-term relationships: they prefer the rev- [2]
ving-up affects of brain amphetamines to the pain-killing effects Stefano_.pdf
of endorphins. [3],8816,993160,00.html
"Divorce rates peak around the fourth year of marriage," says [5]
Charles Panati in his book "Sexy Origins and Intimate Things." [6]
"The initial 'highs' of love have lost their chemical underpin- [7]

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