Journal
JOURNAL OF MIDWIFERY & WOMENS HEALTH
Volume 59, Issue 1, Pages 35-42Publisher
WILEY
DOI: 10.1111/jmwh.12101
Keywords
oxytocin; birth; mothering; Pitocin; labor; stress; mood; postpartum depression; lactation; breastfeeding
Categories
Funding
- National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, National Institutes of Health (NIH) [UL1TR000050]
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Emerging research raises questions that synthetic oxytocin during childbirth may alter the endogenous oxytocin system and influence maternal stress, mood, and behavior. Endogenous oxytocin is a key component in the transition to motherhood, affecting molecular pathways that buffer stress reactivity, support positive mood, and regulate healthy mothering behaviors (including lactation). Synthetic oxytocin is widely used throughout labor and postpartum care in modern birth. Yet research on the implications beyond labor of maternal exposure to perinatal synthetic oxytocin is rare. In this article, we review oxytocin-related biologic pathways and behaviors associated with the transition to motherhood and evidence supporting the need for further research on potential effects of intrapartum oxytocin beyond labor. We include a primer on oxytocin at the molecular level.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available