In plain words
Oxytocin is a hormone made in the brain and released into the blood. It plays a part in several key moments. In labor, it helps trigger and strengthen contractions. After birth, it helps the uterus contract and reduces bleeding. During breastfeeding, it causes the milk , which pushes milk toward the nipple. It is also released during touch and close contact. Some people call it the love hormone, though it does far more than that. Many mothers feel it as a tingling, warmth, or a . is also used in hospitals to start or speed labor, which is a separate use.
The deeper version
Oxytocin is a nonapeptide synthesized in the supraoptic and paraventricular nuclei and released from the posterior pituitary. In lactation it acts on myoepithelial cells to produce milk ejection, and in the uterus it increases contractility and the number of myometrial receptors near term. Synthetic oxytocin is used to induce or augment labor and to reduce . Oxytocin's effect on bonding and social behavior has been studied extensively in human and animal work, with results that are mixed and sensitive to context.
Where it comes up
- How breastfeeding works: supply and demandFeeding Your Baby
- What your partner does in laborGetting Ready for Birth
- Induction: why, how, and what to askGetting Ready for Birth
- Signs labor is startingGetting Ready for Birth
- D-MER: the sad feeling at letdownFeeding Your Baby
What mothers here say about oxytocin
No one has posted under this term yet.
Sources
- Newton M, Newton N — The let-down reflex in human lactation. Journal of Pediatrics 1948
- American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists — Practice Bulletin 107: Induction of labor, 2009, reaffirmed