The next time your wife, girlfriend, lady of the moment gives you grief for hanging with your bro. You can now say, “but baby don’t you care about my health?” You see, as it turns out a bromance may actually be good for you. According to a UC Berkeley study, close social relationships help relieve stress. According to lead author of the study, Elizabeth Kirby “a bromance can be good thing.” Human studies show that social interactions increase the level of the hormone oxytocin in the brain, and that oxytocin helps people bond and socialize more, increasing their resilience in the face of stress and leading to longer, healthier lives.
The new UC Berkely study extends these studies to male rats housed in the same cage, and demonstrates that mild stress can actually make male rats more social and cooperative than they are in an unstressed environment, much as humans come together after non-life-threatening events such as a national tragedy. After a mild stress, the rats showed increased brain levels of oxytocin and its receptor and huddled more.
Our conclusion, just like the boys in the Geico commercial, bro it up fellas.