Gestational Hormone Profiles Predict Human Maternal Behavior at 1-Year Postpartum
Publication Date
9-2016
Document Type
Article
Organizational Units
College of Arts Humanities and Social Sciences, Psychology
Keywords
Estrogens, Progesterone, Maternal behavior, Maternal care, Maternal sensitivity, Maternal brain, Pregnancy, Prenatal
Abstract
In many non-human species, including primates, gestational reproductive hormones play an essential role in the onset of maternal motivation and behaviors. We investigated the associations between prepartum estradiol and progesterone and maternal behavior at 1-year postpartum in 177 women. Blood was obtained at five gestational time points and an index of quality of maternal care was determined using a well-validated mother-child interaction protocol. Women who exhibited higher quality maternal care at 1-year postpartum were characterized by unique gestational profiles of estradiol, progesterone and the estrogen to progesterone ratio; specifically by slower accelerations and levels of these hormone trajectories beginning in midgestation. Further, it appeared that both fetal sex and parity moderated these findings, with first time mothers and mothers of females showing stronger associations. In sum, these data document persisting associations between prepartum hormone profiles and human maternal behavior. More broadly, these findings add to the growing literature highlighting the perinatal period as one of critical neurodevelopment in the lifespan of the human female.
Copyright Date
7-16-2016
Copyright Statement / License for Reuse
All Rights Reserved.
Rights Holder
Elsevier Inc.
Provenance
Received from CHORUS
File Format
application/pdf
Language
English (eng)
Extent
7 pgs
File Size
468 KB
Publication Statement
Copyright is held by Elsevier Inc. User is responsible for all copyright compliance. This article was originally published as:
Glynn, L. M., Davis, E. P., Sandman, C. A., & Goldberg, W. A. (2016). Gestational hormone profiles predict human maternal behavior at 1-year postpartum. Hormones and Behavior, 85, 19-25. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.yhbeh.2016.07.002
Accepted Manuscript is openly available through the "Link to Full Text" button.
The published Version of Record is available at libraries through Compass or Worldcat.
Publication Title
Hormones and Behavior
Volume
85
First Page
19
Last Page
25
ISSN
1095-6867
PubMed ID
27427279
Recommended Citation
Glynn, L. M., Davis, E. P., Sandman, C. A., & Goldberg, W. A. (2016). Gestational hormone profiles predict human maternal behavior at 1-year postpartum. Hormones and Behavior, 85, 19-25. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.yhbeh.2016.07.002