Love is described in many ways, both good and bad: “Love is blind” is first attributed to English author Geoffrey Chaucer. American author and activist Helen Keller said love is like a beautiful flower. According to the (perhaps jaded?) Greek philosopher Plato, love is a “grave mental disease.” Love is also physiology.
Our member-contributors have written about the strong feeling we call love as a genetic formula to help us survive, a physiological motivator to help move our species forward, and as a strong bond between people—or people and their pets—that can help protect our hearts from disease and possibly from emotional pain. Check out some of our past posts about the physiology of love:
- All We Need Is Love?
- 23 and We? Mating for Life Could Be Genetic
- Why Marriage Is Good for Your Heart
- For the Love of a Dog
Erica Roth, MS, is the American Physiological Society’s communications manager. She is a former reference librarian and medical writer.