"How Love keeps you healthy"

Title: How Love keeps you healthy.

By: Sarah Mahoney

Published by Prevention Magazine

Website: http://web.ebscohost.com.prozy.palomar.edu/ehost/detail?sid=23d31690-5b3e-42eeacc4c83f657e103f%40sessionmgr114&vid=8&hid=13&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY29wZT1zaXRl#db=hxh&AN=19420536

So what this article talked about was basically how affection can positively affect not only our relationships, but also our bodies. Although this article seems to mostly only target women, it does have some insight to the benefits that men also get from a healthy dose of affection and love. According to the article, “women in good marriages have a lower risk of cardiovascular disease than those who are in high-stress relationships.” The part about not having so much stress in our relationships reducing cardiovascular disease seems pretty logical to me, I mean if you add on a person who is constantly nagging and fighting with you, then of course you’re not going to be emotionally happy (and this could also effect your immune system!). The article also talks about how people who are in some kind of relationship are less prone to getting sick because they have someone to talk to, connect with, and most importantly (according to the article), and have sex with compared to people who are single. Simple “bear hugs” produce oxytocin which is basically a hormone that relaxes a woman’s body; this is usually released frequently when a woman is trying to bond and trust others.

 The article also brings up the important fact that fighting is healthy, and that it is necessary for a relationship to have in order to “engage in the relationship.” In other words, fighting relieves the dullness of everyday life, but should not be taken to extremes or else it could damage one another. Finally, the article mentions that in order to have a healthy relationship that could help you fight off cardiovascular disease was to engage in sexual activity 1-2 times a week. The reason why this is important is because high amounts of immunoglobulin A (an antibody that starts fighting off diseases and infections first) are released.

The reason why I chose this article was because I found interesting how such simple things can help our health. It took me a while to find an article that had some kind of relevance to what we have been learning in class, and also because I think that it has a lot of research that supports the author’s points. I have to agree that fighting is healthy and that when I’m in a good relationship, I am personally less stressed and more capable of having a good day at work or school because I always have someone to vent to. It’s nice to know that acts of affection that give us that warm tingly feeling is really oxytocin and other antibodies that are produced, taking action and boosting our immune system. It’s like killing two birds with one stone!