Do you crave company or chocolate?

The University of Chicago recently presented the results of their groundbreaking study on loneliness, social isolation and the behavior of the brain at a major psychological conference.  The amazing results of the study are leading psychologists to a new approach to the study of social isolation.

Loneliness affects many of today’s women, regardless of their social situation, and can be a vicious circle.  Lonely people feel less comfortable and relaxed around others, therefor making it harder to integrate into a group or form friendships, and so continuing the cycle of social isolation.  There are a number of behavioural and social explanations for this, but this recent study implies that there may also be biological reasons.  Loneliness is not something which just affects people who do not have a network of people around them.  Even women who are successful and have a large circle of friends have reported feeling socially isolated.

Loneliness is actually a serious health risk, and can lead to a plethora of problems including depression, headaches, stomach ulcers, and heart disease. In extreme cases feelings of social isolation can result in deviant behavior.  One of the world's leading experts in loneliness was also involved in the study, and claimed that social isolation can be "as detrimental as smoking".

In the study 23 women were placed in an MRI machine and shown photos of pleasant and unpleasant images. The MRI recorded brain activity as the women viewed the photos. The results of the study found that certain areas of the brain showed either increased or decreased activity when viewing the photos. One area affected was the ventral striate, considered one of the brains learning centers and responds to rewards such as food, money, social acceptance and love. This part of the brain is normally associated with rewards, both material (for example chocolate) and non-material (which covers things like praise).  The study showed that people who described themselves as lonely showed less activity in this area of the brain when they were shown pleasant images.

John Cacioppo, Professor of Psychology at the University of Chicago, explained what these findings mean. “Given their feelings of social isolation, lonely individuals may be left to find relative comfort in nonsocial rewards.”  In other words,  when friends and family can't reduce an individuals feelings of loneliness they turn to physical or materials pleasure such as food, sex, drugs or money.

How does this study and it's results affect the average American woman? Simply put, it could be life changing. This was the first study to show the link between the brain and the emotional condition of loneliness. Although it is generally thought that loneliness is a problem with social roots,  this study may indicate underlying physical reasons as to why people feel lonely even when surrounded by friends as well as give psychological reasons why some people find it harder to feel comfortable around people.  Now that specific areas of the brain have been associated with social isolation researchers can begin to find ways to lessen a person’s loneliness through medical treatment.

Source: http://www.physorg.com/news153919206.html