New York, May 10: Ever wondered why children have stronger bonding with their mothers than fathers? Well, scientists claim it’s because the maternal love is guided by a cuddle hormone increasingly found in women.
 Scientists at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York have identified a hormone, called oxytocin, which is produced in much larger amount by women, may be behind their stronger bonding with their children.
 Although they have a superficial understanding of how this chemical, also called as cuddle hormone, behaves in humans, they believe the hormone of love helps women having a stronger bonding with their children than their husbands.
 According to researchers, oxytocin performs a number of roles in the human body, and is especially important in expecting and recent mothers, because it can help induce labour or stimulate lactation.
 That link to pregnancy made it a prime suspect for inducing mother-child bonding, and much research has concentrated on uncovering its role in maternal behaviour, said Jennifer Bartz, an assistant professor of psychiatry at Mount Sinai Medical Center .
 “We know that oxytocin facilitates child birth and lactation, and that has led some to investigate its role in attachment between mother and child, and in adult-adult pair bonds,” Bartz was quoted as saying by LiveScience .
 “It’s pretty clear that the hormone oxytocin plays a role in bond formation in animals, but right now, we really know very little about the neurochemistry of bonding in humans.”
 The exact mechanism by which oxytocin initiates bonding remains poorly understood, Bartz said, adding that the chemical interacts with a number of other hormones associated with pleasure and social behaviour, and scientists have not yet unravelled that complex web of biochemical interactions.
 However, research has shown that oxytocin helps individuals remember the faces of the people they like, and distinguish them from the people they don’t like.
 “It seems like one of the things oxytocin does is facilitate social memory. It helps us establish a preference for particular individuals,” Bartz said.
 And, as any mother who feels that her kids call too rarely can attest, the oxytocin-based mechanism that bonds mothers to children may not work reciprocally.
 While the role of oxytocin in childbirth helped researchers link it to motherly love, no evidence has yet shown what chemicals might endear mothers to their children, Bartz said.

Lastupdate on : Mon, 10 May 2010 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Mon, 10 May 2010 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Tue, 11 May 2010 00:00:00 IST