The love hormone that works

A decade ago, a revolutionary paper showed that a hormone called oxytocin can actually make us trust other people. This spawned a flurry of research that revealed oxytocin’s potential to boost social interactions. Now, a new study has shown that the hormone is actually similar to alcohol. However, just like alcohol, it has a dark side, reports discovermagazine.com.

In the first study, published in 2005, volunteers were asked to invest money in an anonymous trustee whose honesty could not be guaranteed. People who received a dose of oxytocin chose to invest more than those given a placebo. Experiments have shown that oxytocin also leads people to become more empathetic, generous, cooperative. and less anxious in social situations.

In our own species, oxytocin has been shown to inhibit men already in relationships from approaching other attractive women; enhance activation of the brain’s reward systems when they see their partner’s face compared to other attractive women and help couples deal positively with conflict.

Along with other functions, mainly in the formation of mother-infant bonding, the ‘love hormone’ seems to know no bounds — and its potential application for helping to cement relationships is clear. Its effects on facilitating social interaction have made it an appealing possible therapeutic tool in patients who struggle with social situations and communication, including autism, schizophrenia and anxiety disorders.

Even better, it is easy to use. All the human studies on it use intranasal sprays to boost oxytocin levels. These sprays are available on the Net.

In the past few years, however, concerns expressed by some researchers have begun to rein in the enthusiasm about oxytocin. Recent studies are showing that the positive effects can be much weaker — or even detrimental — in those that need it the most. In contrast to secure individuals, exposure can reduce trust in those prone to social anxiety. It also increases inclination for violence towards partners.

These paradoxical effects are hard to explain, but a team from the University of Birmingham decided to tackle the issue by comparing studies on the effects of oxytocin with those of alcohol and were struck by the incredible similarities between the two compounds.

Researchers argue that the striking similarities in behavioral outcome tell us something about the biological mechanisms involved. Although oxytocin and alcohol target different brain receptors, activation of these receptors appear to produce analogous physiological effects. Indeed, they also note similarities with how other compounds work, including benzodiazepines, which are commonly used to treat anxiety. Our understanding of how one chemical elicits its effects might thus help us to understand the action of the others.