If botox injections are common, they might have unsuspected effects on our way of deciphering emotions.
Cosmetic surgery offers multiple interventions to modify the body. But one of the most accessible and practiced remains botox injections. Used exclusively on the face, botulinum toxin is injected under the skin to smooth it. It helps in particular to reduce wrinkles.
These injections can be done on several areas of the face. However the forehead and the area between the eyebrows are among the most processed. However, botulinum toxin would not only have effects on the epidermis. According to a recent hypothesis, botox injections would affect the brain and more specifically the region responsible for emotions.
To prove this theory, American researchers conducted an experiment on a panel of 10 female volunteers. Their findings were published in the journal Scientific Reports and they are surprising.
Part of the brain “modified” following botox injections
The researchers performed a single injection on the forehead of all the participants. All were in their thirties and had no health problems at the start of the experiment. Following the bite, the botox caused a slight paralysis of the area between the eyebrows. In fact, it might be difficult for the participants to wrinkle them.
Then following the injection, the volunteers were asked to look at different pictures. They had in common to present images of happy, neutral or sad people. At the same time, the researchers analyzed the brain and physical activity of the panel to see if there was any change because of the botox. Finally, they compared these results with those of another study on a similar subject.
They then found that an area of the brain showed different activity following the injection. This is the amygdala and more specifically the fusiform gyrus. However, this part of our brain allows us to recognize objects but also to process the emotions we feel.
What impact can this gesture have on our emotions?
On the one hand, this cerebral alteration means that we find it more difficult to decipher the objects or the text before our eyes. Also, since the muscle for frowning is paralyzed, it becomes more difficult to express certain emotions. On the other hand, the researchers suggest that botox injections would have an impact on what is called the mirror effect.
The latter occurs naturally in response to emotional stimulation. Seeing a happy person, for example, makes us unconsciously contract our muscles to simulate and understand them. In fact, the injections might harm this perception of emotions and alter them profoundly if the operation is repeated.
