研究：看恋人照片可减轻疼痛

 　　Soothing¹ snaps: Looking at a photo of a loved one 'reduces pain by 44%'

　　Photographs of loved ones have the power to dull pain, scientists have discovered.

　　Researchers found that an image of a romantic partner dulls activity in the pain-processing areas of the brain, to the same degree as paracetamol or narcotics² such as cocaine³.

　　A study by Stanford University found direct evidence linking feelings of emotional attachment⁴ with the soothing of pain.

　　The brains of lovestruck students were subjected to MRI scans as they focused on photographs of partners while varying levels of heat pain were applied⁵ to their skin.

　　Neuroscientist Jarred Younger found, on average, pain was reduced by between 36 and 44 per cent, with intense discomfort⁶ eased by up to 13 per cent.

　　In a study published in the US journal Public Library of Science, the post-doctoral scholar said: 'The reduction of pain is associated with higher, cortical parts of the brain.

　　'Love-induced analgesia⁷ is much more associated with the reward centres.

　　'The region tells the brain that you really need to keep doing this. This tells us that you don't have to just rely on drugs for pain relief.

　　'People are feeling intense rewards without the side effects of drugs.'

　　In a separate analysis, psychologists studied 25 women and their boyfriends of more than six months, subjecting them to different levels of pain, using a sharp, prickling sensation.

　　During the various 'stimulations', the women either held their boyfriend's hand or the hand of a male stranger, both of whom were hidden behind a curtain.

　　In other cases, the women were asked to view a photograph of their boyfriend, or a picture of a male stranger while being subjected to discomfort.

　　Researchers at the University of California, where the study took place, discovered the women showed significantly reduced pain experience while holding their partner's hand.

　　But surprisingly, the photograph of their romantic partner provided equally effective pain relief, and both cases were far greater than when a stranger was involved.

　　(Read by Lee Hannon. Lee Hannon is a journalist at the China Daily Website.)

　　(Agencies)

　　科学家发现，恋人的照片有减轻疼痛的功效。

　　研究人员发现，恋人的照片可以减弱大脑中疼痛处理区的活动，起到类似于扑热息痛片或者可卡因等麻醉剂的作用。

　　斯坦福大学的一项研究发现了证明情感依恋和减轻疼痛有关的直接证据。

　　在研究中，研究人员在热恋中的学生皮肤上进行不同程度的烧灼刺激，要求他们集中精力看他们恋人的照片，同时用磁核共振成像拍摄了他们大脑的活动情况。

　　神经系统科学家贾雷德?雅戈尔发现，平均来说，这些学生的疼痛感降低了36%到44%，而强烈的不适感减轻了约13%。

　　在一项发表在美国《公共科学图书馆》期刊上的研究中，博士后学者雅戈尔说：“疼痛感的减轻与大脑皮质上层有关。

　　“爱情的镇痛作用更多地和奖励中枢有关。

　　“奖励中枢会告诉大脑将当前的行为继续下去，这说明我们不一定只能依靠药品来镇痛。

　　“人们可以强烈地感受到奖励，而不需要承担药品的副作用。”

　　在一个独立研究中，心理学家研究了25位女性和她们的男朋友，这些恋人交往的时间都超过了6个月。研究人员让这些人经历了不同程度的尖锐的刺痛感。

　　在不同的疼痛刺激中，研究人员要求她们握着男友或是一位陌生男人的手，与此同时男人们都藏在帘子后面。

　　而在其他的实验中，研究人员要求这些女性在承受疼痛的同时，看着她们的男友或是一名陌生男子的照片。

　　该研究是在加州大学进行的，该大学的研究人员发现女性在握着她们恋人的手时，疼痛感明显减轻了。

　　但是令人惊讶的是，看着她们恋人的照片也能起到同样的镇痛效果，不过如果对方是个陌生男性，则无论是握手还是看照片，效果都远不及此。

 

　　Vocabulary:

　　dull: (of pain or an emotion) to become or be made weaker or less severe(疼痛或感情)减轻;(使)变麻木

　　paracetamol: a drug used to reduce pain and fever(醋氨酚;扑热息痛)

　　narcotic: a substance that relaxes you, reduces pain or makes you sleep(麻醉剂，麻醉药)

　　MRI: the abbreviation for‘magnetic resonance imaging’(a method of using a strong magnetic field to produce an image of the inside of a person's body) 磁共振成像(全写为 magnetic resonance imaging)

　　cortical: 外皮的;皮质的;皮层的

　　analgesia: the loss of the ability to feel pain while still conscious(痛觉缺失)

　　significantly: in a way that is large or important enough to have an effect on something or to be noticed(有重大意义地;显著地;明显地)

1 soothing   

adj.慰藉的；使人宽心的；镇静的

参考例句：

• Put on some nice soothing music.播放一些柔和舒缓的音乐。
• His casual, relaxed manner was very soothing.他随意而放松的举动让人很快便平静下来。

2 narcotics   

n.麻醉药( narcotic的名词复数 )；毒品；毒

参考例句：

• The use of narcotics by teenagers is a problem in many countries. 青少年服用麻醉药在许多国家中都是一个问题。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Police shook down the club, looking for narcotics. 警方彻底搜查了这个俱乐部，寻找麻醉品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 cocaine   

n.可卡因，古柯碱（用作局部麻醉剂）

参考例句：

• That young man is a cocaine addict.那个年轻人吸食可卡因成瘾。
• Don't have cocaine abusively.不可滥服古柯碱。

4 attachment   

n.附属物，附件；依恋；依附

参考例句：

• She has a great attachment to her sister.她十分依恋她的姐姐。
• She's on attachment to the Ministry of Defense.她现在隶属于国防部。

5 applied   

adj.应用的；v.应用，适用

参考例句：

• She plans to take a course in applied linguistics.她打算学习应用语言学课程。
• This cream is best applied to the face at night.这种乳霜最好晚上擦脸用。

6 discomfort   

n.不舒服，不安，难过，困难，不方便

参考例句：

• One has to bear a little discomfort while travelling.旅行中总要忍受一点不便。
• She turned red with discomfort when the teacher spoke.老师讲话时她不好意思地红着脸。

7 analgesia   

n.无痛觉，痛觉丧失

参考例句：

• Acupuncture anesthesia and acupuncture analgesia has promoted the acupuncture therapy.针灸麻醉和针灸止痛促进了针灸疗法的发展。
• Scientists believe swearing elicits an emotional response which leads to what is known as "stress-induced analgesia."科学家们认为，咒骂引发情绪反应，该反应引起被称作“压力诱发止痛”的现象。