Tylenol May Take Away Your Pain and All Your Emotions
Tylenol may take away your pain and all your emotions, according to a new study.
Tylenol (acetominophen) is a common, over-the counter pain reliever, used by patients to reduce fever and relive minor aches and pains. A new study shows that Tylenol can also numb your emotions. Ohio State University researchers conducted a study where they gave 85 participants 1,000 milligrams of Tylenol or a placebo. Researchers then showed the participants 40 images in random order. The images ranged from extremely pleasant to neutral to extremely unpleasant. The participants were asked to rate the images on a scale of 0 to 10, with 0 indicating”I feel little to no emotion”, and 10, “I feel an extreme amount of emotion.”
Researchers found that those who took Tylenol stayed in the neutral zone, emotionally speaking, and were 20% less likely to rate images as extremely pleasant and 10% as extremely unpleasant. Other research suggests that this could be because Tylenol acts on the insula, which also affects social emotions.
The study is available online in Psychological Science.
Category: News
