Does chocolate taste better to you when you are on a diet? You are not the only one. According to a Northwestern University study published in the Journal of Marketing Research, the guilt we feel when putting a piece of chocolate in our mouths while on a diet makes it more pleasant and tasty.
Going to a rock festival, or simply turning up the volume on the stereo while listening to our favorite song, can be good for the brain. As Neil Todd and his colleagues at the University of Manchester (UK) have shown, when we listen to music at more than 90 decibels, an area of the inner ear known as the sacculus stimulates the brain to release endorphins that make us feel pleasure.
Discovered just half a century ago by Swedish chemists Arvid Carlsson and Nils-Åke Hillarp, dopamine has not only turned out to be the neurotransmitter responsible for pleasurable sensations. It is also involved in the coordination of muscle movements, in decision-making, and in the regulation of learning and memory. Without it we would not feel curious or motivated.
In an article recently published in the Journal of Marketing Research, Schwarz and his colleague Jing Xu found that consumers expect less enjoyment and more guilt when they indulge themselves for no reason or simply to console themselves for some setback in life or at work. However, while we are having a sweet or indulging in some "whim", whether there is a reason or not has no impact on how much we enjoy.
Scientists have spent years observing with the help of scanners how and when the pleasure circuit is activated in the human brain. "As is logical to suppose, this circuit is activated by 'vicious' stimuli such as orgasm, the intake of sweet and fatty foods, financial rewards and some psychoactive substances (tobacco, drugs ...)", explains neuroscientist David J. Linden. These experiences cause the release of dopamine in a series of brain regions (nucleus accumbens, prefrontal cortex, dorsal striatum and amygdala) that generate a pleasant sensation, and the acts that have preceded or coincided with them end up being associated with positive memories and sensations.
In both positive and negative experiences, when something is about to end it gives us an "extra" feeling of pleasure. This is what researcher Ed O? Brien, from the Department of Psychology at the University of Michigan (USA), says in the latest issue of the journal 'Psychological Science'.
The intense pleasure we feel when listening to music causes the brain to secrete dopamine, a neurotransmitter that is also released when faced with more specific pleasures associated with food, sex, drug use or money, according to a study published in the journal 'Nature Neuroscience'.
A study from the University of Cincinnati (USA) reveals that pleasant activities, such as sex or food, reduce stress by inhibiting the anxiety response in our brain. The effect lasts at least seven days, according to the authors in the latest issue of the journal PNAS.
Danni Büchner is invited to Sam Dylan's Halloween party. But the "Goodbye Germany" emigrant has no desire for many other party guests. And find clear words.
