Perhaps. City doctors say that there are no concrete studies to prove that love can heal the ailing, but the presence of a loved one releases chemicals in the body, which in turn facilitates speedy recovery of the patient

They say love can tide over insurmountable difficulties, even those concerning

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health. Though medically there are no studies in India to support this, there is no denying that the human body recovers faster in the company of a loved one. If we talk about love between a man and a woman, there are innumerable examples. And they are not just psychological but chemical as well.
Says Dr V D Joshi, a neuro surgeon attached to Divine Hospital and Jupiter Hospital, "In 1993-94, when I was studying at Sion Hospital, Dr Alok Sharma, the HOD of neuro surgery, was interested in a process called Neuro Immuno Psychology, which studies human emotions like love, hate, anger and fear, which secrete various chemicals leading to the immune response of the body. Someone with a good emotional response will produce good chemical secretion. Serotonin is the neurochemical produced when someone is happy, and this regulates functions like mood, appetite, and sensory perception. So when the patient is surrounded by his or her loved ones, the chances of a good, speedy recovery are higher."

Ties gone sour
Dr Joshi cites the example of a couple. "I have a patient who has been coming to me for treatment for the last five years. He married this girl against the wishes of their parents. Then one day, while repairing an electrical connection at home, he got electrocuted and fell from his second floor house. He lapsed into a coma. At the hospital, his wife never left his side, and soon he showed sings of improving. He even came out his comatose state."
The doctor continues, "A month-and-a-half later, his Kolhapur-based parents came to the hospital and started quarreling with the daughter-in-law. So bad was the situation that the wife had to ultimately leave her husband. From then on, the man's condition deteriorated and he started getting convulsions. His progress was arrested and from the last five years to this day, he is yet to recover from the bouts of fits."
Dr Rajiv Bhagwat, an interventional cardiologist attached to Nanavati Hospital, says, that the brain governs the heart. "So in the case of a patient who has the support of a loved one, the brain releases endorphin, which has a structure similar to morphine, a painkiller. Endorphin controls happiness, so the patient gets better sleep, better appetite and heals faster."
Dr P Jagannath, chairman, Department of Surgical Oncology, Lilavati Hospital, says, "Linking a particular substance produced in the body to heal a wound is difficult. There are no real studies, but psychologically, it does make a difference." Dr Jagannath, instead, urges us to speak to his patient Ruma De and her husband Sudipta on how they overcame a life-and-death situation together.
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In sickness and health
Kolkata-based Sudipta and Ruma De, both 36 years old, have known each other for 16 years. They were friends in college, then fell in love and got married seven years ago. This couple is now in the city for Ruma's treatment. She underwent a major surgery in December for a tumour wedged between her pancreas and liver, just above the portal artery vein. Doctors in Kolkata and Delhi told the couple that surgery was the only way to save Ruma but the motility rate was as high as 95 per cent. Not ready to give up, Sudipta tried various doctors until he came to know of Dr P Jagannath in Mumbai.
"When Dr Jagannath came to know of Ruma, he personally called her up and assured her that everything would be okay. That was the turning point for us. I knew then that things were going to be alright," says Sudipta, who has a three-year-old son. Ruma's aunt, who stays in Powai, supported the couple and insisted they come to Mumbai for treatment and stay at her place.