For our first Valentine's Day a few years back, my boy got me chocolate brains! Not only does he know me extremely well, but he also had it right—love originates in the brain, not the heart.

But what exactly is going on between the ears when those warm and fuzzy feeling wash over us? A new study out just in time for Chocolate Day reveals that love actually acts like an addictive drug. Hmmm, it seems that Ke$ha also got it right...

Researchers at Stony Brook University in New York examined the neural correlates of intense, long-term love using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) in 10 women and 7 men. fMRI measures brain activity as a function of changes in blood flow. The participants, married an average of 21 years, underwent imaging while viewing either an image of their partner's face, or a familiar acquaintance.

Compared to viewing the acquaintance, areas specifically activated when viewing their spouse included:



• Regions of the dopamine-rich reward system, including the ventral teg . . . More