Fatherhood 'lowers testosterone to keep men loyal'

• Lan wrote on 2011-09-18 07:09
  [Image: http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/55304000/jpg/_55304860_fatherhoodspl.jpg]

  
  

  Men appear to be biologically wired to care for their babies, say researchers who have discovered levels of testosterone go down after fatherhood.
  
  This drop in the male hormone presumably makes the dad more family-oriented and less likely to stray, say the Northwestern University team.
  
  Testosterone increases a man's sex drive and helps him compete for a mate.
  
  The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences work followed 624 young men before and after they became fathers.
  
  This revealed that as soon as a man had a baby, his testosterone levels dropped substantially.
  
  Men with newborn babies less than a month old had especially reduced levels of testosterone.'
  
  Larger falls were also seen in those who were more involved in childcare.
  
  Biological driver
  The lead investigator of the work carried out in the Philippines, Christopher Kuzawa, said: "Raising human offspring is such an effort that it is co-operative by necessity, and our study shows that human fathers are biologically wired to help with the job.
  
  "Fatherhood and the demands of having a newborn baby require many emotional, psychological and physical adjustments. Our study indicates that a man's biology can change substantially to help meet those demands."
  
  And the researchers believe lower testosterone levels might protect against certain chronic diseases, which could, in part, explain why married men and fathers often enjoy better health than single men of the same age.
  
  Prof Ashley Grossman, spokesman for the Society for Endocrinology, said life and biology may be "much more subtle and adaptable than we had previously thought.
  
  "This shows the hormonal and behavioural trade-off between mating and parenting, one requiring a high and the other a low testosterone level."
  
  Dr Allan Pacey, senior lecturer in andrology at the University of Sheffield, said the findings were fascinating:
  
  
  "Testosterone levels in men generally don't change that much. They can slowly decline as men get older and change in response to some medical conditions and treatment. But to see dramatic changes in response to family life is intriguing.
  
  "The observations could make some evolutionary sense if we accept the idea that men with lower testosterone levels are more likely to be monogamous with their partner and care for children. However, it would be important to check that link between testosterone levels and behaviour before we could be certain."

  
  
  http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-14880055
• Phunkie wrote on 2011-09-18 07:18
  Well that's cool!
• Kingofrunes wrote on 2011-09-18 07:25
  Hm, this is an interesting find. There is so much we don't know about the human body.
• Conor wrote on 2011-09-18 07:31
  i lov babies so much
  
  But this is pretty cool!!
• Zid wrote on 2011-09-18 08:55
  Would this also mean lower sex drive? I think that might contribute to lower sexuality in marriage (not that it could be a bad thing).
  
  Still, this would partially explain some things about men's behavior after they start taking care of children.
• Adelynn wrote on 2011-09-18 08:59
  Wow, I had NO idea that something like this could happen. Less health problems definitely seems like a good thing.
• Phunkie wrote on 2011-09-18 09:03

  Quote from Zid;590681:

  Would this also mean lower sex drive? I think that might contribute to lower sexuality in marriage (not that it could be a bad thing).
  
  Still, this would partially explain some things about men's behavior after they start taking care of children.

  
  
  Testosterone isn't the only thing that affects a man's libido. It's that along with a combination of other hormones, as well as one's physical and psychological health.
• MareneCorp wrote on 2011-09-18 09:07

  Quote from Phunkie;590688:

  Testosterone isn't the only thing that affects a man's libido. It's that along with a combination of other hormones, as well as one's physical and psychological health.

  
  
  But lower testerone in that time can decrease the, even if slim, chances of something bad happening.
• Chockeh wrote on 2011-09-18 10:41
  That's clearly not the case for some people T_T.
• Claudia wrote on 2011-09-18 11:00
  Interesting find.
• Bride wrote on 2011-09-18 19:26
  so much for the excuse some men give, "men are meant to spread their seed" or something like that. i like this find
• Cynic wrote on 2011-09-19 03:06
  These people have obviously not met half of the male population.
• JustNoOne wrote on 2011-09-19 04:30
  Mmm interesting, i wonder if it's the same for fathers adopting their child
• Lan wrote on 2011-09-23 21:01

  Quote from Cynic;591396:

  These people have obviously not met half of the male population.

  
  
  Half? Where the hell did you get those statistics?
• starpaw7 wrote on 2011-09-24 11:11

  Quote from Lan;597022:

  Half? Where the hell did you get those statistics?

  
  
  Maybe referring to the scumbag father [SIZE="1"]and the other varieties of douches[/SIZE]
  
  Half is an overestimation, but biology alone cannot change someone's mindset; whether good or bad.
  
  Nice find though, I learn something every day

  [Image: http://www.freesmileys.org/emoticons/tuzki-bunnys/tuzki-bunny-emoticon-002.gif]

  
  
  And besides, caring for a child is very time consuming and can put a lot of stress on a relationship - this study wouldn't be a major factor in explaining the actions of both parents.