Having a new baby in the home seems to bring out the softer side of fathers, according to new research. A brand new study published in the September 12, 2011 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences indicates that new fathers actually experience hormonal changes after they become fathers that may play a role in their ability to care for their children.
High Levels of Testosterone Found During Mating
According to scientists from Northwestern University in Newfoundland, Canada, certain species involve the male partner more in the role of caring for the young. During the process of competing for the female to mate with, testosterone levels in these species are at the highest level.
Yet after the offspring is born, experts have seen that the levels of testosterone in the male partner decline substantially. This change may be an important factor in the male's ability to care for his young.
When Do Testosterone Levels Change in Men?
Until recently, experts have known that testosterone levels in human males are lower among new fathers. However they have not known until now whether men with low testosterone are more likely to become fathers or if the low levels of testosterone in men have occurred as a result of fathering children.
In order to find out more, Canadian researchers took a large group of over 600 men from the Philippines to test levels of testosterone in men. They began with a group of single nonfathers and tested their testosterone levels in the morning hours as well as in the evening. Results in the human studies seemed to be consistent with what happens with other species in nature.
As it turns out, single males with the highest levels of waking testosterone were more likely to become fathers at a 4.5 year follow-up. However experts noticed that these high levels of testosterone began to change after these men became fathers. The males who became fathers during that period experienced the largest drop in testosterone levels, as compared to the group of men who were still single nonfathers.
Fathers Involved in Child Care Have Lowest Levels of Testosterone
Results from the study even showed that among new fathers, the ones who spent three hours or more doing child care had the lowest levels of testosterone among all the groups tested.
According to one of the study authors, Christopher Kuzawa, human males are designed to play a crucial role in the important job of raising their children. "Raising human offspring is such an effort that it is cooperative by necessity, and our study shows that human fathers are biologically wired to help with the job."
Brenda Lane - Brenda Lane is a published author, Lamaze certified childbirth educator, DONA certified birth doula and approved birth doula trainer.
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