LET'S GET PHYSICAL
What REALLY happens to your body when you fall in love: From sobering up quicker to being bitten more by mosquitoes
These are the physical reactions that happen when you fall in love according to science
THE Love Islanders are changing - not only do they seem to be getting fitter, friskier under the sheets and slightly less intelligent - we're looking at you and your "carpenter" gag, Georgia.
But it's not their fault. According to scientific research, falling in love has some weird and wonderful effects on the human body, including increasing muscle definition, better and more frequent orgasms and even making you less "switched on."
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Here’s what REALLY happens to your body when you’re head over heels…
You’re more likely to sober up faster
People in love could find that binge drinking and hangovers have become a thing of the past after meeting their match.
Although being in love can give you a sense of feeling drunk, researchers have found that an effect of love drug oxytocin - a chemical released when we feel love and makes us feel euphoric - is that it blocks alcohol from entering certain areas of the brain.
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During a study on rats, researchers found that those given alcohol and oxytocin appeared less drunk, than those given just alcohol.
The same study found that coffee not only makes drunk people more dehydrated but could cause them to make even worse decisions than before. So maybe decline the invite for that late night cuppa, girls.
Love helps your wounds heal quicker
Madly in love? Then it's likely your cuts and bruises will heal quicker, according to research at Ohio State University.
In one study, scientists used a small suction cup to give 42 married couples eight small blisters on their arms. The skin from each blister was then removed.
On one occasion, the pairs were asked to discuss something they felt emotional about and strongly disagreed on.
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The next time they were asked to talk about a subject that made them feel close and bonded.
It found that just 30 minutes talking reduced the time it took their skin to recover by at least a day.
It makes you a better liar
The chemical oxytocin, which is released in our brains when we hug, kiss and cuddle, doesn’t only make us more loving -it can also make us better liars.
Researchers found that people who were given a dose of the bonding chemical were more likely to cheat in games in order to win money for their team compared to those not given it.
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Sixty volunteers were spit into two groups to play a game of coin toss and predict whether they would flip heads or tails.
Scientists found that the group given oxytocin were more likely to lie that they correctly predicted the right answer, leading them believe players felt more driven to win on behalf of their group.
You’re more likely get bitten by mosquitoes
The show’s producers may want to start handing out the mosquito nets, as you are more likely to get bitten by the blood-sucking insects when you’re in love.
This is mainly due to the increase in body temperature, which is also behind the classic sweaty palms nervousness of being around somebody you have the hots for.
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Body temperature is found to rise when you’re feeling happy or content.
It’s also down to sweat, so an increase in physical activity will make you more attractive to pesky insects, whose ability to see you at night is determined by your body odour and excretions.
Nothing says romance like bodily excretions, right?
It keeps wrinkles away – but only if you stick with the same partner
Botox may not be the only way to hold back wrinkles.
In 10-year studies of more than 3500 people by researchers at the Royal Edinburgh Hospital, couples who claimed to make love three to four times a week – around the twice the average – had the looks of people ten years younger.
However not any sex will keep you youthful looking - only love-making with a devoted partner in long-term loving relationship will do the trick.
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Dr David Weeks, a neuro-psychologist at the Royal Edinburgh Hospital, and author of Super-young: The proven way to stay young forever says: "My research shows that the pleasure gained from sex is a crucial factor in preserving your youth.
"It makes us happy and produces chemicals telling us so. But the quality of the relationship is also an important factor. The people I studied were in good strong loving relationships and treated their partners with love and support."
"Losing your mind" isn’t just a figure of speech
If you’re up for a promotion at work, or planning some serious game-playing in the villa, then falling in love might NOT be the best course of action.
The hormone Oxytocin, the same one which slows the heart rate and makes you relax, is also shown to impair your memory.
Love Island's Georgia Steel says a carpenter is someone who lays carpets while on a date with Paul Knops
Not only does the hormone leave you feeling ‘love drunk’, but it also plays a part in forgetfulness, leaving you unable to recall words or memories.
So for the islanders, having sex before a villa quiz can lead to poor results.
You look fitter without even trying
The lads in the villa are getting buffer - and that's because when they are sexually aroused they release extra testosterone - which is the primary driver of muscle tone.
Essentially, by spending their time surrounded by scantily clad women, the boys are getting ripped without even trying.
A study by the University of Pisa showed that women had increased levels of the male hormone throughout the honeymoon period, too.
Love Island's Josh Denzel performs sexy dance during shower singing Mysterious Girl
So at the start of a relationship, men and women are equally matched in their sex drives.
But although male levels of testosterone stay high over the course of the relationship - meaning they still have increased levels of sexual appetite - studies show that the levels in women drop month by month.
Better keep grafting, boys!
You feel like you've taken cocaine
The term ‘the love drug’ may not be as metaphorical as you once thought.
The feelings of craving your partner, wanting to be with them every minute of the day, and obsessing over their every move (ahem, Laura) are just as addictive as cocaine, according to experts.
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A study by Syracuse University found looking at a picture of a loved-one triggered the parts of the brain which released oxytocin- the love hormone.
The same sensation is felt when taking cocaine and the brain releases dopamine through the nervous system.
Feeling the emotion of love also stimulates the medical insula, the part of the brain that is known to control pain levels, taking away any negative feelings.
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Dr. Helen Fisher, anthropologist and author of Why We Love, even goes so far as to describe romantic love as "one of the most addictive substances on Earth".
On the flip-side, the same study found that when love affairs go wrong, there’s a significant rise in the risk of depression.
Women have more intense orgasms when in love
It’s long been accepted that talking and building a connection is much more important to women than it is to men.
Researchers at the University of Switzerland found that in general, a woman's orgasm has more to do with the way she's stimulated emotionally, than the physical stimulation of her vagina.
Love Island's Idris Virgo wows the girls in the firemen challenge
It’s all linked to the part of the brain that controls addiction – so the higher the love dose, the more intense the orgasm.
And as an added bonus for the ladies, their orgasms last for five to ten seconds, while men, being able to ejaculate at 28MPH, experience orgasms which are several seconds shorter.
This means we can expect things to be louder in the Love Island villa as the weeks go on…
Your heart really does skip a beat
The term ‘heart-stopping’ may be a little dramatic, but there’s truth behind the idea that your heartbeat changes when you meet The One.
The love hormone Oxytocin is released after orgasm for men and women – which is why you’re often more affectionate after having sex.
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It also causes you to relax, reduces stress levels and slows down heart rate.
This hormone release explains why all of the boys in the villa describe themselves as feeling lighter after doing the deed.
It’s not due to their sperm count, as although it takes 24 hours to 36 hours to ‘replenish’, they can be ready to go again within 5 minutes.
It gives you beer goggles
It seems there really is scientific truth behind the old adage, ";love is blind."
Even if you don’t have the looks of a Love Island star, the good news is that your beloved is wired to look past your beer belly or bingo wings and think you are just as attractive.
In a study which shows that beauty really is in the eye of the beholder, researchers from Groningen University in Holland quizzed 70 young couples and fount that both men and women had developed ‘a positive illusion’ about their loved ones, giving them much higher ratings for attractiveness than their partners gave themselves.
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In a further study, researchers found loved-up people also tend start ignoring other people they previously might have found attractive before Cupid’s arrow struck.
Researchers at Florida University asked 57 students to recall the moment when they felt most in love with their partners.
When they were then shown 60 pictures of other people straight afterwards, and their eyes were tracked, it was found they spent far less time looking at images of exceptionally beautiful ones than single people did.
Scientists believe the people in love develop tunnel vision so they can concentrate on their partners long enough to make long-term bonds.
The feeling of butterflies isn't just in your head
Ever had that feeling of butterflies in your stomach? It’s not just a figure of speech, but your stomach’s reaction to all of the emotions happening when you fall in love.
A group of neurologists at UCL studied the brains of 11 women and six men who described themselves as ‘madly in love’.
Love Island's Wes Nelson and Megan Barton Hanson have sex twice
What they discovered is looking at a picture of a loved-one triggers the parts of your brain linked to excitement and euphoria, but also a part, which is much-less-studied, that is known to control the perceptions of the gut and pain.
This means the pain of being in love, and the feeling of butterflies on your first date, have been proven as real, physical reactions.
It changes your tastebuds
If you’ve noticed that Dani Dyer has been tasting all of the sweet treats in the villa, it’s because falling in love with boyfriend Jack Fincham.
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Although it’s often said that love is the sweetest thing, scientists have proved that the feeling of being in love actually morphs your sense of taste.
In a recent study, participants were induced to feel love, happiness, and sadness, and it was those who felt love that tasted a sweet flavour in sour and bitter food, and even water.