Love, sex and the male brain
Although women the world over have been doing it for centuries, we
can’t really blame a guy for being a guy. And this is especially true
now that we know that the male and female brains have some profound
differences.
Our brains are mostly alike. We are the same
species, after all. But the differences can sometimes make it seem like
we are worlds apart.
The “defend your turf” area — dorsal
premammillary nucleus — is larger in the male brain and contains
special circuits to detect territorial challenges by other males. And
his amygdala, the alarm system for threats, fear and danger is also
larger in men. These brain differences make men more alert than women
to potential turf threats.
Meanwhile, the “I feel what you feel”
part of the brain — mirror-neuron system — is larger and more active
in the female brain. So women can naturally get in sync with others’
emotions by reading facial expressions, interpreting tone of voice and
other nonverbal emotional cues.
Perhaps the biggest difference between the male and female brain is
that men have a sexual pursuit area that is 2.5 times larger than the
one in the female brain. Not only that, but beginning in their teens,
they produce 20 to 25-fold more testosterone than they did during
pre-adolescence.
If testosterone were beer, a 9-year-old boy
would be getting the equivalent of a cup a day. But a 15-year-old would
be getting the equivalent of nearly two gallons a day. This fuels their
sexual engines and makes it impossible for them to stop thinking about
female body parts and sex.
And so begins the ‘Man Trance’
All that testosterone drives the “Man Trance”– that glazed-eye look a man gets when he sees breasts. As
a woman who was among the ranks of the early feminists, I wish I could
say that men can stop themselves from entering this trance. But the
truth is, they can’t. Their visual brain circuits are always on the
lookout for fertile mates. Whether or not they intend to pursue a
visual enticement, they have to check out the goods.
To a man,
this is the most natural response in the world, so he’s dismayed by how
betrayed his wife or girlfriend feels when she sees him eyeing another
woman. Men look at attractive women the way we look at pretty
butterflies. They catch the male brain’s attention for a second, but
then they flit out of his mind. Five minutes later, while we’re still
fuming, he’s deciding whether he wants ribs or chicken for dinner. He
asks us, “What’s wrong?” We say, “Nothing.” He shrugs and turns on the
TV. We smolder and fear that he’ll leave us for another woman.
Not surprisingly, the different objectives that men and women have
in mating games put us on opposing teams — at least at first. The
female brain is driven to seek security and reliability in a potential
mate before she has sex. But a male brain is fueled to mate and mate
again. Until, that is, he mates for life.
Despite stereotypes
to the contrary, the male brain can fall in love just as hard and fast
as the female brain, and maybe more so. When he meets and sets his
sights on capturing “the one,” mating with her becomes his prime
directive. And when he succeeds, his brain makes an indelible imprint
of her. Lust and love collide and he’s hooked.
By Dr Dr. Louann Brizendine read the full article on CNN
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