{
  "id": 4898585,
  "title": "Five ways the human body can sync up with other people",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/01/five-ways-the-human-body-can-sync-up-with-other-people",
  "topic": "science",
  "section": "Science",
  "published": "2026-09-01T17:00:09.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Medical Xpress",
    "slug": "medical-xpress",
    "url": "https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-ways-human-body-sync-people.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Our bodies can synchronize with those around us in various ways, beyond the debunked myth of menstrual cycles becoming aligned. Synchronization occurs when physiological or behavioral processes match up, while co-regulation involves one person's emotional or physiological state influencing another. Research has uncovered two primary methods of bodily synchronization with others.\n\nFirstly, our hearts have a remarkable ability to sync with those we're close to, as seen in studies involving couples. Their heart rates and heart rate variability, which measures the time between heartbeats, have been found to coordinate during activities like sleeping together. This phenomenon also extends to choral singers, whose heartbeats align when singing together, thanks to their synchronized breathing patterns.\n\nSecondly, our eyes can spontaneously synchronize when engaged in the same task or stimulus. Research has discovered that pupils of two individuals can become wider or narrower simultaneously, even if one person isn't exposed to the same sensory input as the other. This suggests that our behaviors and physiological responses can become coupled through social interactions, going beyond just reacting to shared stimuli.\n\nMoreover, our brains can display similarities in electrical activity patterns when imitating each other. A study revealed that while one person speaks and another listens, both exhibit synchronization in various brain waves, not just those related to speech processing but also those associated with focus and daydreaming. Additionally, people's neural activity patterns gradually align as they interact, known as interpersonal neural synchrony.\n\nEven pain perception can be influenced by social synchronization. Rowers who train together show a higher pain threshold compared to those who train alone. Similar findings have been observed in singers, indicating a possible link between the camaraderie of shared experiences and the body's endorphin levels, which act as natural painkillers.\n\nHowever, not all synchrony is beneficial. Our stress levels can also synchronize with those close to us, particularly through cortisol patterns. Cortisol is a hormone released by the adrenal glands that helps regulate blood sugar, but prolonged high levels are linked to negative health effects. Studies have shown that couples often display similar patterns of cortisol rise and decline, potentially due to shared stressors or external factors affecting one partner and consequently the other. This biological connection between humans, even in a digital world, highlights the profound impact of social interaction on our physiological well-being.",
  "summary": "The myth that when women live together their menstrual cycles become synchronized has long persisted—despite research showing there's no evidence that this so-called McClintock effect exists. Any overlap that does happen is probably just down to chance.",
  "key_points": [
    "Hearts of close individuals synchronize during activities like sleeping together.",
    "Eyes of individuals can spontaneously synchronize when engaged in the same task or stimulus.",
    "Brain waves of people interacting gradually align, known as interpersonal neural synchrony."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}