A synthetic nasal spray delivering the “love hormone” oxytocin might help men lose weight, according to a new study in which the hormone treatment reduced the number of calories consumed by men.
The study, which focused on a small number of men, saw what the study’s lead author Dr. Elizabeth Lawson called “early signs” indicating that the synthetic hormone induces a reduction in how much food an individual consumes per meal and also improves the human body’s handling of blood sugar, Philly reported.
We are seeing early signs that oxytocin reduces how much food someone eats at a meal and improves the way their body handles blood sugar
Oxytocin is a hormone released by the pituitary gland which increases contraction of the uterus during labor and also stimulates milk ejection from the ducts located within breasts.
In regards to pharmacology, the commercial form of the substance is acquired from beef and hog pituitary glands or by synthesis. It finds application in pharmacology as a labor inducer and postnatal hemorrhage controller.
As far as biochemistry is concerned, it’s a polypeptide hormone which stimulates muscle contractions in the uterus, particularly of the smooth muscle.
It’s been linked to sex, hugging, kissing, holding hands, giving birth and breast-feeding.
While the findings are derived from preliminary research, Lawson has indicated that the researchers will continue studying oxytocin in relation to eating and that their study’s findings are scheduled for presentation March 8 at the Endocrine Society meeting held annually in San Diego, California.
Research is considered preliminary until it has been published in a peer-reviewed journal, allowing others in the field to assess and test the data in order to confirm or disprove the findings.
The men examined in the small trial were taking Syntocinon, a synthetic form of the hormone, and the results were a 122 kcal reduction in their total caloric intake. This number derived from a comparison to those administered a placebo spray instead of the actual formulation of oxytocin.
Summarizing, Dr. Lawson indicated to MedPage Today at a press conference that a single dose administered to healthy men basically caused the men to eat “less at a breakfast meal,” burn more fat, and handle their blood sugar better.
Subjects didn’t feel different after administering the drug, they simply “didn’t eat as much,” according to Lawson who is an assistant professor of medicine at Masachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston.
Are you excited for what this intriguing love hormone known as oxytocin might entail for male weight-loss?
