Certain area in the brain for the spirit of Christmas?

Danish researchers discover "Christmas network" in our head
Why do some people get into a festive harmonious mood just before Christmas? But why are there people who leave Christmas totally cold? Is there really something like a "spirit of Christmas"? In fact, there seems to be a kind of network for the Christmas spirit in our heads. This researcher from Copenhagen discovered by functional MRI scans.
For many people, a special mood develops in the time just before Christmas. Do the feelings associated with the season actually produce a reaction in the human brain? The scientists have now discovered that there is a network of multiple cortical regions in our brain. This network seems to be responsible for our holiday mood. The results of their study, the researchers published in the scientific journal "British Medical Journal".

Is there an area for Christmas feelings in the brain? Image: vege - fotolia

Brain of some people does not come in "Christmas mood"
Most people know the Christmas story of Charles Dickens. The story is about the old and wealthy Ebenezer Scrooge. The old man is a heartless miser. Christmas he considers a waste of money and time. But why was the old man such a bitter "Christmas hater" in history? The physicians found that in such people, certain areas of the brain simply do not respond to Christmas and its attendant mood. These people would, so to speak, carry no Christmas spirit, the doctors said.

Researchers studied respondents' response from Christmas photos
After a survey of their affinity for Christmas traditions, researchers divided participants into two groups. Each group contained ten subjects, there was a Christmas group and a non-Christmas group. The participants were then shown a mix of photos with everyday themes and pictures with Christmas scenes. Then it was evaluated how the subjects had reacted to pictures of Christmas lights, fir trees and Christmas biscuits. The participants were not previously informed about the purpose of the study, said the researchers from Copenhagen.

Increased brain activity detected in Christmas pictures
When the subjects were shown everyday images, the scientists were unable to detect any difference in neuronal activity between the two groups. The researchers of the Christmas group but showed Christmas photos, an increased activity of the brain could be observed. The affected areas of the brain, for example, have a lot to do with spirituality, somatic senses and the recognition of facial emotion, the researchers said in their study. Unfortunately, it is not clear whether this observed brain reaction is related to Christmas.

"The result could also be a combination of happy, festive or nostalgic feelings in general," added the doctors. The images could contain "certain inconspicuous differences, such as a higher concentration of the color red". These differences could be responsible for the triggering of various brain activities. More research was needed to fully address these issues, the researchers said in their study. Despite all these problems and ambiguities, the doctors are not yet ready to give up their Christmas research. If we understood how the Christmas mood affects our neurological network, we would gain insight into an interesting area of ​​human neuropsychology, the researchers said. (As)