Oxytocin Essay

Approximately 800,000 people under 18 are currently diagnosed with autism. This number is increasing as more screening has become available, and there is no cure in sight. Autism is a disorder that is characterized by frequent deficits in communication and social interaction, a lack of trust in others, and generally poor social skills. However a new and promising treatment is arising in the form of the hormone oxytocin. Oxytocin is a hormone that is found in mammals that has various functions. One effect of oxytocin is that it seems to increasing trust in social interactions. There are very few studies that have tested the effect that oxytocin has on increasing trust and social skills in people, and therefore more testing is needed. Although there are not enough long term studies, the short term response to oxytocin is positive. Recent research indicates oxytocin treatments for autistic patients correlate with improvement in facial recognition, and recognizing emotions of others. Therefore, using oxytocin provides a promising new approach to treating autism.

Background

Because autism symptoms vary in degrees and severity, autism is considered a spectrum disorder; each individual falls somewhere within the spectrum depending on their specific symptoms. Though autism affects a small percentage of children, the number of those affected is on the rise. There are different types of autism including Asperger’s, a mild form of autism in which the individual affected becomes obsessive over interests, and Rett syndrome which affects mostly females and is marked by the loss of communication skills. Asperger’s is on the higher functioning end of the spectrum as you cannot identify their disability by looking at them, and often have average o...

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Oxytocin is a promising treatment for autism because it improves facial and emotion recognition. Several studies have proven that oxytocin increases trust and reactions in the social areas of the brain that normally do not have strong reactions when exposed to social stimulation. There is no known cure for autism, and although those with higher functioning autism may not need one, it is important that one as promising as oxytocin is investigated more. More long term studies need to be done in order to see how successful oxytocin is over a lifetime but short term studies suggest that the treatment of oxytocin is incredibly helpful for those affected by autism. It is presumed that because those with autism have lower amounts of oxytocin receptors, flooding them with the more than the normal amount of the hormone ensure that more receptors will be activated.