It seems that oxytocin is two-faced. The hormone that promotes feelings of love, social bonding, and well-being can also cause emotional pain, an entirely new, darker identity for the much studied hormone. The new findings, by researchers from Northwestern University, come from two experiments detailed in the journal Nature Neuroscience. In the first experiment, three […]
The first direct evidence that oxytocin promotes relationship fidelity in humans has been provided by a study that measured the distance men keep between themselves and an attractive woman. The work is documented in The Journal of Neuroscience. Oxytocin plays a vital role in triggering childbirth and facilitating mothering. It is known to promote bonds […]
A case report in The Journal of Sexual Medicinedetails how “significant, broad-spectrum improvements in sexual function” were apparent in a male subject after intranasal oxytocin use, leading the researchers to ponder the mass market potential of oxytocin as a lifestyle drug for men. The hormone oxytocin, sometimes referred to as the “cuddle hormone” or “love […]
Duke University researchers evaluating the effectiveness of oxytocin – the “love” hormone – in treating autism and schizophrenia say that their experiments with monkeys indicate that oxytocin enhances social interaction and increases trust. Duke neuroscientist Michael Platt says that administering the hormone through a nebulizer can make rhesus macaques pay more attention to each other […]
New experiments with oxytocin – known as the love hormone because of its importance in bonding between romantic partners and mothers and children – have shown it to have a profound influence on value judgments as well as feelings of well-being and our sensitivity to advertising. The findings were presented at the Neuroscience 2010 conference. […]
The hormone oxytocin has come under intensive study in light of emerging evidence that its release contributes to the social bonding that occurs between lovers and friends. It was known that birth and lactation boost oxytocin levels in new mothers and now researchers have found a link between oxytocin in new fathers and the quality […]
Released on a massive scale during orgasm, the neuropeptide oxytocin is also known to trigger childbirth and strengthen the emotional bond between a mother and new-born child. Now, researchers have found that it can also have a dramatic effect on men’s emotional empathy and learning processes. In the latest experiments, half the male participants received […]
Relationships are hard work and most of us have probably felt at some point that communicating positively with our significant other when discussing stressful issues is an impossible task. Now, however, researchers think there may be a safe way to take the “edge” off such discussions. Reported in Biological Psychiatry, a study by Swiss researchers […]
The annual meeting of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology has been told that oxytocin may have significant positive effects on adult autism patients. The study examined the effects of oxytocin – sometimes referred to as the trust drug – on repetitive behaviors and aspects of social cognition in adults with autism. Researcher Eric Hollander, from […]
A brain imaging study at the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) has discovered that the fear-processing circuitry in the human brain appears to be short-circuited by the brain chemical oxytocin, sometimes referred to as the “trust” hormone. The scans of oxytocin’s effects on the human brain reveal that it quells the brain’s fear hub, […]
