Mothers with postpartum depression or a lighter form of it often feel sad, tired or anxious after the birth of their child. They may have sleep problems and often worry excessively about their baby or feel like they are not being a good mother. Researchers at Radboud University and Radboudumc therefore investigated in an experiment whether the hormone oxytocin could help improve the interaction between these mothers and their children (between 3 and 9 months old).
Active substance: more positive contact
The experiment consisted of two moments of measurement. At one of the two moments, mothers with postnatal depression got a nasal spray containing oxytocin, during the other experiment a placebo. The mothers themselves did not know during which moment they received oxytocin or the inactive nasal spray. The researchers then looked at the mothers' behavior and perceptions during contact with their babies.
'The results show that mothers expressed more positive feelings and affection after oxytocin dose,' according to psychologist Madelon Hendricx-Riem, one of the researchers. 'For example, they were warmer and more enthusiastic in their behavior, smiled more often and sought more physical contact with their baby. In addition, the mothers reported feeling more positive.' The experiment format with two moments of measurement allowed the researchers to demonstrate a causal relationship between the extra oxytocin and the more positive contact between mother and child.
No difference in caring for baby
However, oxytocin had no effect on how adequately mothers cared for their babies. 'We had actually expected a relationship between oxytocin and so-called sensitivity,' says Hendricx-Riem. 'In postnatal depression, there is often a somewhat disturbed interaction between mother and child, for example, because the mother does not quite assess why a baby is crying or because she reacts delayed to her crying baby.'
Nor did the mothers start to feel better thanks to oxytocin. 'We measured cortisol levels and heart rate of the mothers and the oxytocin had no effect on them in this experiment,' Hendricx-Riem said. 'That may be because we now measured during moments of play between mother and child. In follow-up research we want to look at crying moments, because this is when mothers experience a lot of stress. Perhaps at those moments oxytocin does cause a lower heart rate and less cortisol.'
Not a cure, but a lead for intervention
Still, oxytocin has a positive role anyway in the contact between mothers with postpartum depression and their child, the researcher believes. 'The mothers respond more positively to their child thanks to oxytocin and are also able to enjoy those moments of contact a little more. We don't see oxytocin directly as a cure for postpartum depression, but there are starting points for interventions. For example, you can also produce oxytocin through more physical contact with your baby. Perhaps mothers with postnatal depressive symptoms would benefit from doing baby massage or having more skin-to-skin contact with their baby.'
The research was funded by an NWO Open Competition XS grant (Madelon Hendricx-Riem) and Radboud Fonds (Madelon Hendricx-Riem en Peter Mulders). Research team: Madelon Hendricx-Riem, Lisa Loheide-Niessman, Roseriet Beijers, Indira Tendolkar, Peter Mulders