Cesarean Delivery's Effects on Birth Hormones Could Impact a Newborn's Neurodevelopment

Cesarean section delivery and vaginal delivery lead to different hormonal exposures that could affect a newborn's development, reports a new study. The findings of the study are published in the Journal of Neuroendocrinology.// The //study notes that levels of each of the 'birth signaling hormones' oxytocin, vasopressin, epinephrine, norepinephrine, arginine, and glucocorticoids are lower following c-section delivery than vaginal delivery.

These hormones may play many roles in helping an infant adapt the following birth, and modifications in their levels in early life could result in long-term neurodevelopmental consequences.

"Given that nearly one-third of all births in the US currently occurs through cesarean delivery, it's essential that we try to learn whether the well-established epidemiological associations between cesarean delivery and various neurodevelopmental outcomes like higher rates of autism and obesity are due to changes in these crucial hormones during the sensitive period that is birth," stated author William Kenkel, Ph.D., an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences at the University of Delaware.

Source-Medindia