Love Is In The Air, And The Brain

There may be a rational explanation for lovesickness, that swept-off-your-feet feeling you get in the first weeks of a budding romance.

CBS News Correspondent Kelly Cobiella says research suggests that the way our brains are wired actually causes us to act irrationally when we fall head over heels for someone.

"It's like you're not yourself anymore," exclaims Desiree Idrogo.

Cobiella reports that a team of scientists studied the brains of 17 college students, in the first few months of a relationship. They found that new love is more like hunger or thirst, more biological than emotional, and completely separate from that other "L" word, lust.

If you think love starts with that romantic carriage ride through the park or the first kiss, think again, Cobiella suggests. It actually starts in a part of the brain called the caudate.

The brain scans of the students showed more activity in the caudate when the students looked at pictures of their new love. It's the same area deep in the brain that lights up when a drug addict gets his fix, or a compulsive gambler wins a bet.

So when we say we "can't stop that lovin' feeling," in the beginning, maybe we can't.

But of course, being drunk with love doesn't last forever. In time, scientists say, the emotional part of the brain kicks in, leaving you either with commitment or -- a terrible hangover.

One of the study's co-authors, Dr. Arthur Aron, a social psychologist with the State University of New York, Stoney Brook, stopped by The Early Show Wednesday to discuss the findings with co-anchor Hannah Storm.

Asked if men and women are different in this area, he responded, "Not very."

He says the area of the brain involved when people first fall in love is the area associated with "fulfilling strong desire."