What is Oxytocin Hormone.?
Oxytocin is a hormone secreted by the posterior lobe of the pituitary gland, a pea-sized structure at the base of the brain. It's also known as the "cuddle hormone" or the "love hormone," in the human body because it is released when people snuggle up or bond socially. Oxytocin is produced in the hypothalamus and is secreted into the bloodstream by the posterior pituitary gland, it is released into the blood when these cells are excited.
Oxytocin can also make people less accepting of people they see as outsiders. In other words, whether oxytocin makes you feel cuddly or suspicious of others depends on the environment.
New Northwestern Medicine research shows oxytocin also can cause emotional pain, an entirely new, darker identity for the hormone.
Human sexual response: Oxytocin levels in plasma rise during sexual stimulation and orgasm. At least two uncontrolled studies have found increases in plasma oxytocin at orgasm – in both men and women
Oxytocin in Women
- Oxytocin is a particularly important hormone for women. "Oxytocin is a peptide produced in the brain that was first recognized for its role in the birth process, and also in nursing.
- The hormone causes uterine contractions during labor and helps shrink the uterus after delivery.
- It plays a role in social bonding, sexual reproduction, childbirth, and the period after childbirth, and also promotes mother-child bonding.
Oxytocin in Male
- In the male mammal, the small peptide hormone oxytocin is produced in similar quantities within the hypothalamic-pituitary magnocellular system as in the female, yet for the male little is known about the physiology associated with this hormone.
- In a study, published in PNAS in 2010, men were given a dose of oxytocin and asked to write about their mothers. Those with secure relationships described their moms as more caring after the hormone dose.
