Social isolation creates craving in the same brain region as wanting food or addictive drugs, study finds

Cravings for social interactions affect the same area of the brain hit by hunger pangs after a long absence of nosh, researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have found. In a quest to understand the effects of social isolation during a global pandemic, the researchers recruited a group of 40 subjects to undergo …

[Chris G]

Who would have guessed

That social interaction stimulates the pleasure centres of a social animal's brain.

While it is nice to have scientific corroboration, sometimes it exasperates me when scientists state the bleedin' obvious as if it were a new discovery. Without a social drive there would be no civilisation or the level of technology that we have.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Who would have guessed

Yes science stating the bleedin' obvious can be exasperating, even when accompanied by new measurements (brainscans!) which provide actual data in support of the obvious. But it's a necessary part of science. It's also a lot less embarrassing than "We never bothered to look, as we thought it was obvious what would happen. We were wrong. And now [competitor] has published the result, and will scoop up the grant money."

[Blackjack]

Re: Who would have guessed

I am mostly an introvert and even I am sick and tired of Lockdown.

I guess that for people more social it must be even worse.

[johnnyblaze]

Yeah, surprise me.

Humans are social creatures - we need it. Lockdowns drive anxiety, depression and feelings of isolation. Suicides up, domestic abuse up, divorce rates up. It's not rocket science, and this will be felt for years to come.

[Oh Matron!]

Re: Yeah, surprise me.

WFH since before Lockdown, as we have a leader who, you know, understands science and listens to experts.

Rant aside, we won't be back into the office till at least July next year. I'm thankful that my flat mate works from home for two days a week, but it's bloody lonely the rest of the time, even working for a company that fully embraced video conf'ing over a decade ago.

[BenDwire]

Re: Yeah, surprise me.

Pfft! You should try being an old single retired bloke, with nothing to do anymore.

Pesky kids think they know everything about life ...

/s

[Eclectic Man]

Re: Yeah, surprise me.

I remember social intercourse in what is reputedly called 'the Great Outdoors' (wherever that may be).

Some of it was in three dimensions too. :o)

Happy days.

Now, where's the gin?

[Brewster's Angle Grinder]

Re: Yeah, surprise me.

You forgot the arthritis that makes walking 10 yards seem like completing a half marathon.

[Eclectic Man]

Re: Statistics anyone?

p.p.p.s. And also remember that whatever they say the experiment is about, is not what the experiment is about.

[Hollerithevo]

Introvertz Rule!

Finally our time of world domination has come. Laughing to scorn the feeble mental resources of our pack-animal "brethren" we stride ahead in lock-down adversity, sloughing off stress and anxiety with a merry quip, able to climb our won mountains and eat our own pizzas without a support group.

We knew it was only a matter of waiting long enough. But we have the last laugh hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!!!!!

</maniacal>

[Joe W]

I... don't think so

However, the cravings resulting from social isolation were specific to those social stimuli, research associate Dr Livia Tomova and her colleagues found.

Tell that to my bathroom scales.... I have the feeling that the social isolation does in fact influence the craving for food.

[AnAnonymousCanuck]

10 hours Is Not Social Isoloation

10 days maybe.

YMMV

AAC

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: 10 hours Is Not Social Isoloation[sic]

But it included online...

10 hours without the internet. No Facebook. No Instagram. No Whatsapp. No Youtube. And worst of all, no fooling about on the Register's comment section, sharing your pearls of wisdom with like-minded commentards. For 10 hours.

The horror. They might have had to, I don't know, read a book or something.

[Stumpy]

Re: 10 hours Is Not Social Isoloation[sic]

You have just described Nirvana.

Thankyou.

[My-Handle]

Re: 10 hours Is Not Social Isoloation[sic]

Oh God, please give me waking 10 hours where I don't have to interact with anyone!

Seriously. I've taken no leave (nor been furloughed) since the pandemic began. Turns out IT is pretty core for a lot of companies. Several things have gone wrong at home, requiring extensive time and effort to fix. I ended up being drafted in for jury duty. My other half works from home and is really suffering from isolation, so I'm trying to spend as much time with her as can be managed.

I could really use a 10 hour break...

[Totally not a Cylon]

Not inclusive!

Not all humans are social animals.

Some of us just don't like people, why? because they're idiots.

There should be a study to find out what percentage have thrived through enforced social isolation.

If there had been an opportunity for a long duration (at least 18 months) mission on the ISS, I would have paid to go!!!!

[chivo243]

Re: Not inclusive!

People make me crazy... and remember, I don't have an anger problem, I have an idiot problem more and more as I get older it seems.

[Eclectic Man]

Does this apply

to my football team's 'defenders'? They've been 'socially isolating' all season. :o(

[Pascal Monett]

"Cravings for social interactions"

What is that ?

Seriously, what ?

I work from home, these days, or from my freelance office. Social interactions ? Outside of giving me the specifications of what I need to program, I don't need any. They are more of a nuisance than anything else because they keep me from concentrating on my programming.

The only social interaction I need is the customer telling me what he wants, then thanking me for the job when I'm done. Outside of that, Mondays and Fridays is game night with my two best friends, the rest of the week is my wife and daughter, and that is all I need.

Yes, I'm a cave troll. My wife is fine with that.

[whitepines]

Re: "Cravings for social interactions"

Mondays and Fridays is game night with my two best friends, the rest of the week is my wife and daughter, and that is all I need.

So you actually do have enough social interaction to satisfy the basal need identified by the study.

Your point was?

[Jonathon Green]

It's no social integrator

It's a one man isolator

It's a back brain stimulator

It's a cerebral vibrator

Those energy stimulators

Just turn your eyeballs into craters

But an orgone accumulator

Is a superman creator...

[Santa from Exeter]

I'll see you sometime later

When I'm through with my accumulator

Have an upvote for the Hawkwind lyrics :-)

[DanThePainter]

Bloody Romans.