Botox Injections May Help Avert Negative Emotions

 Botox, which is used to get rid of unwanted wrinkles, could have another surprising use – as an anti-depressant, a new study conducted by American researchers reveals.Undergoing botox treatment involves injecting the protein derivative, botulinum toxin type A, in areas which in which wrinkles and frown lines appear. Researchers from University of Wisconsin-Madison, led by Dr David Havas, interviewed more than 40 patients twice, immediately after the treatment and two weeks later.

On both occasions, the patients were asked to express their feelings to set of statements. The researchers found that while there was no change in the time required to react to happy statements, the patients took a longer period to express anger or sadness.

Murad Alam, who conducted a similar experiment of his own, said that there was a subtle connection between facial expressions and negative feelings. “When we are sad, angry or frustrated, but we have Botox on board, our muscles do not contract to create furrows between our brows and deep creases on our foreheads. This lack of frowning and wrinkling works backward to adjust our emotions and make us happier”, he said.

The study is to be published in the journal Psychological Science.

According to the National Institutes of Health, Botox is a drug made from a toxin produced by the bacterium Clostridium botulinum; the same toxin that also causes fatal food poisoning called botulism. “Botox injections work by weakening or paralyzing certain muscles or by blocking certain nerves. The effects last about three to four months,” the NIH said, adding that pregnant or breast feeding women must not use the product.

Botox is used as an anti-wrinkle treatment in older individuals as it paralyses facial muscles. It now appears to have another important use – that of a mood elevator.   

WEDNESDAY, February 10, 2010 from News Locale