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http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/8653500.stm


Page last updated at 10:59 GMT, Friday, 30 April 2010 11:59 UK

'Cuddle hormone' makes men more empathetic 

Emma Wilkinson 
Health reporter, BBC News 

 
Men are not as 'tuned' in to people's feelings as women


A nasal spray can make men more in tune with other people's feelings, 
say a team of German and UK researchers.

They found that inhaling the "cuddle hormone" oxytocin made men just as 
empathetic as women. 

The study in 48 volunteers also showed that the spray boosted the 
ability to learn from positive feedback. 

Writing in the Journal of Neuroscience, the researchers said the spray 
may be useful for boosting behaviour therapy in conditions such as 
schizophrenia. 

Oxytocin is a naturally produced hormone, most well-known for triggering 
labour pains and promoting bonding between mother and baby. 


 This study is the latest of several that suggest that intranasal 
oxytocin seems to 'sensitise' people to become more aware of social cues 
from other individuals 


Professor Gareth Leng


But it has also been shown to play a role in social relations, sex and 
trust. 

Study leader Professor Keith Kendrick, a neuroscientist at Cambridge 
University, said by giving the hormone nasally, it quickly reaches the 
brain. 

In the first part of the study, half the men received a nose spray 
containing oxytocin and half were given a dummy spray. 

They were then shown photos of emotionally charged situations including 
a crying child, a girl hugging her cat, and a grieving man, and were 
asked questions about the depth of feeling they had towards the 
subjects. 

Those who had the hormone spray had markedly higher levels of empathy - 
of a similar magnitude to those only usually seen in women who are 
naturally more sensitive to the feelings of others. 

Neither group were able to accurately guess whether they had received 
the oxytocin or the dummy spray. 

Positive feedback

In a second experiment, the researchers measured "socially motivated 
learning" where the volunteers were asked to do a difficult observation 
test and were shown an approving face if they got the answer right and 
an unhappy face if they got it wrong. 

In these types of experiments, people generally learn faster if they get 
positive feedback but those who had taken the oxytocin spray responded 
even better to facial feedback than those in the placebo group. 

Professor Kendrick said the oxytocin spray may prove to be useful in 
people with conditions associated with reduced social approachability 
and social withdrawal, such as schizophrenia. 

And other researchers are already looking at its potential use in 
autism. 

"The bottom line is it improved the ability of people to learn when they 
had positive feedback and that is pretty important because this might 
help improve the effectiveness of behavioural therapy or even be useful 
in people with learning difficulties." 

Professor Gareth Leng from Edinburgh University said the research used 
some cleverly-designed tests. 

He added there has been a lot of interest recently on oxytocin and 
social behaviour. 

"This study is the latest of several that suggest that intranasal 
oxytocin seems to 'sensitise' people to become more aware of social cues 
from other individuals - and more likely to be sympathetic to them."