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CHICAGO – "Chemistry look what you've done to me,"
Donna Summer
crooned in
Science of Love, and so, it seems, she was right. Just in time
for Valentine's Day,
a panel of scientists examined the mystery of what happens when hearts
throb and lips lock. Kissing, it turns out, unleashes chemicals that
ease
stress hormones in both sexes and encourage bonding in men,
though not so much in women. Chemicals in
the saliva may be a way to assess a mate, Wendy Hill, dean of the
faculty and a professor of neuroscience at
Lafayette College,
told a meeting of the
American Association for the Advancement of Science on Friday.
In an experiment, Hill explained, pairs of
heterosexual college students who kissed for 15 minutes while listening
to music experienced significant changes in their levels of the
chemicals oxytocin, which affects pair bonding, and cortisol, which is
associated with stress. Their blood and saliva levels of the chemicals
were compared before and after the kiss.
Both men and women had a decline in cortisol
after smooching, an indication their stress levels declined.
For men, oxytocin levels increased, indicating
more interest in bonding, while oxytocin levels went down in women.
"This was a surprise," Hill said.
In a test group that merely held hands,
chemical changes were similar, but much less pronounced, she
said.
The experiment was conducted in a student
health center, Hill noted. She plans a repeat "in a more romantic
setting."
Hill spoke at the session on the Science of
Kissing, along with Helen Fisher of
Rutgers University
and Donald Lateiner of
Ohio Wesleyan University.
Fisher noted that more than 90 percent of human
societies practice kissing, which she believes has three components —
the sex drive, romantic love and attachment.
The sex drive pushes individuals to assess a
variety of partners, then romantic love causes them to focus on an
individual, she said. Attachment then allows them to tolerate this
person long enough to raise a child.
Men tend to think of kissing as a prelude to
copulation, Fisher said. She noted that men prefer "sloppy" kisses, in
which chemicals including testosterone can be passed on to the women in
saliva. Testosterone
increases the sex drive in both
males and females.
"When you kiss an enormous part of your brain
becomes active," she added. Romantic love can last a long time, "if you
kiss the right person."
Lateiner, a classical scholar, observed that
kissing appears infrequently in Greek and Roman art, but was widely
practiced, despite the spread of skin disease at that time by facial
kissing. And there was a potential for social faux pas by kissing the
wrong person at the wrong time.
Overall, the science of kissing — philematology
— is under-researcherd, Hill concluded. |
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London, Feb 10 (ANI): Women who get
thrills from regular orgasms are more likely to be successful at
work and healthy, according to a leading expert.Psychologist Dr Lisa Turner has said that
while men lose energy through orgasm, women are empowered by
them and gain clarity of thought.According to Turner, the right type of orgasm will “massively
increase your energy. ” Previous studies have suggested that 28
per cent of women rarely, or never, achieve full orgasm, and
many resort to faking it.Now, Turner has said that good orgasms
boost health and concentration and help women perform better at
work, reports the Sun. She believes: “You will feel more
vital, healthy, and energised.” (ANI)
(with thanks thaindian.com)2009
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With Thanks Times of
India June 4 , 2006 By Meenakshi Kumar / TNN : Its another blow for the
girl child.Super Rich Indian Couples are heading to US to realise their
dream of a baby boy. With the help of a technology that can select the
sex of a child at the conceiving stage , desperate Indians are shelling
out as much as Rs. 10 Lakh to order a male baby.A top US Doctor confirms
that among the Indians who visit him , an overwhelming majority asks for
a baby boy. Los Angeles based fertility Doc , Jeffrey Steinberg , who
specialises in sex selection treatment , has seen a number of Indians
Travelling to his clinic , Fertility Institutes." we see about two to
four couples from India every month" he confirms.And the request , is Primarily for Boys. |
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Times of India : June14,2006 : By Anahad O' Connor :
The facts expectant mothers awaiting the end of their pregnancy are often
told that sex can induce labour. Compare that method with running around the
block a few times or drinking castor oil - two other folk beliefs - and its
no surprise that surveys of pregnant women have found sex to be the most
popular option. Whether the method works is another story. According
to a study released this month , the first to examine the belief , having
sexual intercourse in the late stages of pregnancy does not hasten labor and
delivery , and in fact it may do opposite. The study in the journal
OBSTERTICS AND GYNECOLOGY , followed 93 women in their third
trimesters , all of whom answered questions about their sexual activity and
underwent cervical examinations at regular doctors visits. Those who
reported having sex in their final weeks of pregnancy - about half -
delivered on average at 39.9 weeks , compared with 39.3 weeks among those
who had abstained. The study also revealed something else . Part
of the scientific explanation for the belief is that human sperm contains
the hormone prostagladin , believed to stimulate the cervix and help start
contractions. But prelabor exams showed no signs of this effect in any of
the women who were sexually acvtive , said Jonathan Schaffir , an assistant
professor of Obstetrics and gynecology at Ohio State University and the
author of the study. The bottomline is sex during the late stages of
pregnancy does not hasten delivery. NYT News service. |
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