Sport is as happy as cannabis The luck of the runner and the endocannabinoids

What triggers the happiness of runners
People who like to jog know the feeling of happiness that makes effort and pain forget. A new study now shows where this exhilaration of running may come from. Researchers believe that cannabis-like substances could be behind it.

Happiness while running
Especially many cross-country skiers know the feeling of happiness, which makes even pain and effort forget. A feeling that can even make some athletes really addicted, as sports psychologists warn again and again. The cause of this so-called "Runner's High" is often called the release of endogenous endorphins.

When sport becomes addiction. Researchers have analyzed reasons. Image: let's design - fotolia

Mannheimer and Hamburg scientists around Johannes Fuß from the Institute for Sexual Research and Forensic Psychiatry at the Eppendorf University Hospital and Peter Gass from the Central Institute for Mental Health in Mannheim have now brought other endocannabinoids into the game, reports the news agency dpa. Endocannabinoids of the body are said to animate cravings, among other things, as found in previous studies.

Ecstatic states during sports and sex
The German researchers reported now in the "Proceedings" of the US Academy of Sciences ("PNAS") on the results. According to their statements, the endorphins released in the blood can not pass through the blood-brain barrier and thus do not trigger the effects. However, lipophilic endocannabinoids, whose levels in runners' blood also increase, are different. Foot reported that it had been possible, for the first time, to prove in experiments that the runner-up in mice was related to the cannabinoid receptors. According to his own information, the scientist is generally interested in ecstatic states, "both in sport and in sexuality".

Pain sensitivity decreases
In the test of theory, the animals had to pedal for five hours in wheels. They covered up to 6.5 kilometers. Although no happiness can be demonstrated on mice, the team was able to detect accompanying effects of the runners' high. Thus, the long-range mice of the study were less sensitive to pain and less anxious than the control group. The researchers tested the sensitivity to pain by placing the mice on a hot test plate after the run. Compared to a control group, the long-distance mice were relaxed. So it took longer for them to lick their paws or jump up. According to the scientists, this indicates a lesser sense of pain.

Long-distance mice showed less anxiety
In addition, tests in a light-dark box showed them a lower sense of anxiety. The animals were placed in a dark chamber. Then the researchers observed how often and how far the mice ventured out of their cozy, dark chamber into the neighboring gleaming bright chamber. It was found that the long-distance runners showed less fear among the mice and dared generally longer in the unpleasant bright environment. Thereafter, the mice were given drugs that blocked the endocannabinoid receptors. The positive effects of the runners up were missing. According to the scientists, there must be a connection. On the runner high, however, the blockade of endorphin receptors had no effect. The researchers believe that the underlying mechanisms in humans and mice are likely to be similar.

Sport can be addictive
A "Runner's High" or generally too much sport can also become a dangerous addiction, as various experts recently warned. "There are withdrawal symptoms, those affected become aggressive and restless," said sports psychologist Heiko Ziemainz of the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg. "They try everything to do sports and neglect their social environment." And other experts emphasized that social constraints and the ideal of a perfect body can also contribute to sports addiction. When sport becomes an addiction, it can also harm your health. For example, severe signs of wear and tear on the joints, bones, tendons and ligaments as well as fatigue and cardiac arrhythmias may be at risk. (Ad)