Did you know that pessimism and optimism are hereditary? Proven by scientists!

2018-02-11 15:34

Did you know that pessimism and optimism are hereditary? Proven by scientists!
Why do some people always say that the glass is half empty, while others are convinced that it is half full? All people are divided into optimists and pessimists. And scientists have finally figured out the nature of these fundamental differences.

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It turns out that it’s all in the levels of biologically active substances — so-called neuropeptide Y.

The more of these molecules is synthesized in the brain, the more optimistic person looks at the world. While individuals with reduced indicators of synthesis of the neuropeptide often experience difficulty in dealing with stressful situations. To such conclusion the American experts at the University of Michigan, reports Rus.Media.

Scientists have found that the synthesis of neuropeptide Y is programmed genetically, that is, in fact, pessimism and optimism just inherited. But early diagnosis of the level of this important substance in the future will help doctors to diagnose in the early stages of mental illness from simple depression to severe schizophrenia and other psychoses.

The discovery the researchers made using the technique of magnetic resonance imaging. Scanning the dozens of volunteers, scientists considered the brain’s response to different words that the subjects were asked to listen to during the experiment. Some words had a completely neutral emotional, others were negative (e.g. “murderer”), or positive (e.g., “hope”). Thus, subjects with decreased production of neuropeptide Y in response to negative words was activeroles characteristic zones in the prefrontal cortex of the brain. These areas of the brain responsible for processing emotions. Subjects with a sufficient level of neuropeptide did not show such a reaction — they were less labile to the words.

After this test, the researchers conducted a number of clarifying experiments and clarified that the initial assumption was indeed correct — optimism or pessimism depends on a single material, the development of which is caused genetically.