"Love addiction," a condition characterized by severe pervasive and excessive interest toward a romantic partner, may actually be a form of attachment disorder, new research suggests."There is an urgent need for a better conceptualization of love addiction from a nosological and neurobiological perspective.
love addiction is defined as a pattern of maladaptive behaviors and intense interest toward one or even more romantic partners at the detriment of other interests and resulting in a lack of control and significant impact on functionality.
Although it can occur simultaneously with substance dependence or sex or gambling disorders, it can also be considered an addiction behavior itself, a part of a mood or obsessive-compulsive disorder, or even a part of erotomania.
"It is thought that love addiction affects as many as 3% of the population. And in certain subsets of young adults, it may even go up to 25%" .
Individuals who are most at risk for the condition include those with an immature concept of love, a maladaptive social environment, or high levels of impulsivity and anxiety; are anxious-ambivalent or "seductive narcissists"; or have structural affective dependence.
In love addicted patients analysis showed that a picture of a participant's "beloved" elicited activation in the brainstem, the right ventral tegmental area (VTA), and the caudate nucleus regions in the brain. These areas have been shown to be central to the brain's reward, memory, and learning functions and have been implicated in substance abuse. In addition, addiction and attachment disorders share overlapping neural circuits, through the VTA to the nucleus accumbens.
Love Molecules
There are four possible "molecules of love" include dopamine (which incites desire and facilitates repetition of love behavior), oxytocin (which mediates social behavior), the opioid hormone (which activates pleasure sensations), and vasopressin (which affects protective behaviors). All these molecules need further study.
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