I have always loved roller coasters, the exhilaration, the fear, the feeling afterwards where it is like you have taken a great weight off of your shoulders. These temporary thrills can be good for your mental health as well as giving your heart its daily ‘good’ shock, but what about the lasting effects? What effects do these voluntary stimulations have on the brain and the body.
In recent years, which coincidentally tied in with becoming a parent, I lost some of that thrill seeking adrenaline junkie attitude as quite often our perceptions change when we have children. Everything is a risk and I do question whether we are tempting fate by being propelled up into the air, or thrown around with only a bar (in some rides) to hold you in place.
In this episode I share my experiences from the theme park Gulliver’s Land and the effects roller coasters have on our bodies and brains. I detail the areas of the brain that are involved and share events where these experiences have gone unfortunate for some.
There are several regions of the brain that are involved in responding to the sensations of roller coasters including the amygdala, vestibular system and areas associated with dopamine reward pathways. You have probably heard about dopamine and serotonin, they’re kind of like the good hormones, that help with the good feelings of euphoria and enjoyment.
This episode is not intending to ruin theme park rides, far from it, but it is interesting to find out where these feelings come from, and what makes you go back for more.
FUN FACT – The amygdala and hippocampus are close neighbours. Both are located within the medial temporal lobe and are located very close to each other, with the amygdala situated in front of the hippocampus. They are both paired structures, with one located in each hemisphere of the brain. They kind of look like a U shape.
Sources:
How do roller coasters affect your body, Discover magazine
Pilot Findings of Brain Displacements and Deformations during Roller Coaster Rides, National Library of Medicine
This is your brain on… roller coasters? Stanford Medicine
Amusement Park Rides & Physics, Home Science Tools Resource Center
Chessington theme park riders stranded after power cut, BBC News
