I'm asking in the context of evolution. Why would something like that evolve? I'm sure the anesthesia is nice, but how could something like that become a common trait in a population by evolutionary means?
2006-08-08 11:15:34 · 2 answers · asked by Ejsenstejn 2 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Biology
Endorphins serve the exact same purpose in animals that are injured but are *not* going to die. They provide a natural method for the brain to block out pain. That way an animal can concentrate its efforts on escaping that which caused the injury, and hopefully survive. Pain can be incredibly debilitating, causing an animal or human to remain in a dangerous place even when it's obvious that they should move in order to survive. Endorphins give the brain a way to block the pain for a short while in order to deal with it at a later, more convenient time. Since this is a great survival characteristic, it's clear why it evolved - some creature survived an encounter with a predator due to their body's unique endorphin-releasing ability. They were then able to reproduce and pass the trait to their offspring. Almost all vertebrates now have the endorphin-releasing response, so it shows that it serves a definite survival advantage.
2006-08-08 11:24:59 · answer #1 · answered by Kevin 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Okay, maybe you have to look at this from another angle. In order to survive, you HAVE to get away from a dangerous situation. If you are crippled by pain, you die! Also, you MUST be able to protect your young (survival of your genes), if you are crippled by pain, they die. So logically, any thime any animal is in grave danger they need to shut off the pain valves - so to speak.
Make sense? Then if you are dying of pain, you get the benefits of this evolutionary leftover. Lucky for us.
2006-08-08 11:22:59 · answer #2 · answered by Loulabelle 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋