Watching sad or traumatic movies can sometimes be just what the doctor ordered. A new study reveals that watching distressing movies may boost our tolerance to pain. Researchers at Oxford University say that movies that get your emotions going can increase the amount of endorphins released by the brain. These are our body's natural painkillers - chemicals that make us feel better after physical or psychological pain. Dr Robin Dunbar, a co-author of the study, explained that: "Maybe the emotional [distress] you get from tragedy triggers the endorphin system." He added: "The same areas in the brain that deal with physical pain also handle psychological pain."

有时医生会让病人观看悲伤或创伤性的电影。一项新的研究披露，观看令人伤心的电影或许可以增强我们对痛苦的忍耐力。牛津大学研究人员表示，让我们的情绪尽情释放可以增加大脑内啡肽的产量。这是身体天然的止痛药——这种化学物质在身体或心理遭受痛苦之后能够让我们感觉更好。这项研究的联合作者Robin Dunbar解释说：“或许悲剧给你带来的悲伤情绪触发了内啡肽系统。”他补充说：“大脑中负责身体疼痛的区域同样也负责心理痛苦。”

Dr Dunbar and his colleagues conducted a series of tests to determine the effect that tragic stories have on us. They invited 169 people to take part in the experiment. One group watched a traumatic drama about a disabled man battling homelessness, drug addiction and alcoholism. Another group watched a documentary on the geology and archaeology of Britain. The results showed that on average, the pain tolerance of those who watched the traumatic drama increased by 13.1 per cent. This compared to an average decrease in pain threshold of 4.6 per cent for those who watched the documentary. Dr Dunbar suggested one reason we like watching sad movies is the natural high from the endorphins.

Dunbar博士和他的同事进行了一系列测试来确定悲剧电影对我们的影响。他们邀请了169人来参加这项实验。一组观看了一名残疾男子与无家可归，毒瘾和酗酒斗争的悲伤故事。另外一组观看的是关于英国地质和考古的纪录片。结果表明，平均来说，观看创伤性电影的一组对痛苦的忍耐力增加了13.1%。而观看纪录片的一组对痛苦的阈值平均下降了4.6%。Dunbar博士认为，我们喜欢看令人伤心的电影的一个原因内啡肽水平会增加。