THE CHEMICAL MESSENGERS
OXYTOCIN: THE WARM AND FUZZY ONE
Oxytocin also known as the love hormone is a natural hormone which promotes feelings like trust, empathy and bonding in relationships. Along with other hormones like serotonin and dopamine, oxytocin completes the trio of feel good chemicals of the body. It stimulates uterine contractions in childbirth, affects aspects of human behavior and the male and female reproductive systems.
The hypothalamus, a gland situated below the midbrain makes this hormone but the posterior pituitary gland stores and releases it into your bloodstream. This warm hormone is a chemical messenger in the brain and has an important role in many human behaviors and social interactions including:- sexual arousal, parent-infant bonding, recognition and romantic attachment.
While the baby sucks at the breasts the pituitary gland releases oxytocin and as soon as the baby stops the release of oxytocin stops. In males oxytocin plays a part in ejaculation. The hormone contracts the vas deferens to push sperm and semen forward for ejection. Oxytocin also affects the production of testosterone in the testes. In females if the oxytocin levels are low the uterine contraction during birthing and ejection of breastmilk can be stopped. Oxytocin plays a major role in the delivery of a baby. During labour, when the fetus’s body pushes against the cervix, the nerve impulses from this stimulation travel to the brain and stimulate the pituitary gland to release oxytocin into the bloodstream. The oxytocin travels to the uterus and stimulates contractions. Once the baby is born, oxytocin promotes lactation by causing contractions of the myoepithelial cells in the alveolar ducts of the breasts. These contractions levels have also been lined with disorders like autism and depression. Having higher-than-normal oxytocin levels is very rare for people assigned female at birth and is called oxytocin toxicity. It results in an overactive uterus, causing an increase in uterine muscle mass , which limits pregnancy due to not being enough space in your uterus to hold your fetus. For males, high levels of oxytocin have been linked to benign prostatic hyperplasia. BPH is a condition in which the prostate, a walnut-sized body part made of glandular and muscular tissue, grows in size. There are many ways by which the levels can be controlled.
In conclusion I would like to say that the release of these hormones are controlling who we are and how we act so keeping them in balance in necessary.
