What if fiction meets reality? Love potions, potions supposed to be able to make the person of our choice fall in love with themselves, could well see the light of day in 10 years. In any case, this is what Dr. Anders Sandberg, a very serious neurologist at the University of Oxford (United Kingdom), asserts at the Broadly site. He thus explains that one of the reasons for which we form a couple is because the human baby is not able to survive alone, unlike certain baby animals, in particular the horse. In the brain, falling in love releases oxytocin and vasopressin, two hormones that activate dopamine, a neurotransmitter linked to pleasure. The symptoms of love are thus quite similar to those of a stimulant. This explains why we feel a lack when the loved one is far from us.
Anders Sandberg explains that a modern love potion would therefore be a combination of these three chemical elements:oxytocin, vasopressin and dopamine. To be effective, it should stimulate the right side of the brain, which is not yet possible. But the specialist specifies:“Our understanding of the brain and its functioning is much better than it was. I would be very surprised if we couldn't solve this problem (to stimulate part of the brain, editor's note) within 10 years. He therefore estimates that the marketing of love potions could be envisaged within twenty years. However, the very existence of products that can trick the brain into believing that it is falling in love obviously poses an ethical problem, the scientist not hesitating to compare them to "date-rape drugs". So what would be the point of a love filter according to him? It could serve to strengthen a long-time couple or a couple shaken by a difficult experience and avoid a breakup.
If love potions existed, would you dare to take them?
