eli5: What is love, physiologically?
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The short answer is that we still don’t have the full picture. What we do know is that it appears to have a significant hormonal component. You may have heard of oxytocin, the so-called “love hormone.” This is an oversimplification, but is secreted in response to certain stimuli we associate with love, and it reinforces psychological bonds between individuals. (It has a lot of other effects too, not all of which are related to love or bonding.)
There are a variety of other substances that play roles as well, such as dopamine. Dopamine is often associated with pleasure; more accuracy, it seems to be related to motivation.
There are hypotheses that what we call love has something to do with neuronal circuits involving the limbic system as well.
All together, it’s the neural circuitry and neurochemistry of the brain engaged in a positive feedback loop to reinforce positive associations and emotional attachment toward a particular subject.
I’ll stop now before the urge to make a Haddaway reference becomes unbearable.
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