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FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 27, 2009
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Brain Scans Prove Love Can Last

Brain scans show some couples really do keep things fresh

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(Newser) – It looks like conventional wisdom was wrong, and the old songs were right: You really can bring back that loving feeling. Or at least some people can, the Times of London reports. About one in 10 couples in 20-year relationships still showed the same brain responses to pictures of their partner as young couples do.

This new finding contradicts earlier ideas that the strong chemical surges of love mainly appear during the first 15 months of a relationship, and fade away entirely after about a decade. "The findings go against the traditional view of romance," says one of the psychologists who conducted the brain-scan study. "But we are sure it's real."

Most relationships, studies have found, pass out of the intensely romantic phase after about a year.
Most relationships, studies have found, pass out of the intensely romantic phase after about a year.   (Flickr)
Love's not a bed of roses, no pleasure cruise for most couples, who cease to exhibit the same chemical responses to their partner after a decade or so. But a small fraction of couples buck that trend.
Love's not a bed of roses, no pleasure cruise for most couples, who cease to exhibit the same chemical responses to their partner after a decade or so. But a small fraction of couples buck that trend.   (Flickr)
Though even scientists thought that all love fades or changes over time, a new study indicates that for some couples, the most intense of loving feelings just don't go away.
Though even scientists thought that all love fades or changes over time, a new study indicates that for some couples, the most intense of loving feelings just don't go away.   (Flickr)
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