"The Hormone of Love" improves the social skills of some children with autism

A study examining children with autism who received the hormone oxytocin shows that the effect of this procedure was positive, but only for some of them. This helped scientists understand which children are most likely to benefit from this procedure.

In the course of this study, scientists received an amazing hint of the placebo effect, which, despite its importance for science, has not yet been fully understood.

Disagreements between scientists

In recent years, there have been many questions about whether oxytocin, known as the hormone of love or trust, should be given to autistic children to deal with the negative aspects of their illness. The reason for the disputes was how it affects their behavior. Nevertheless, the studies that were conducted earlier were small and often inconsistent.

The effect of oxytocin on autistic children

Dr. Karen Parker of Stanford University continued this work, initially assessing the baseline level of oxytocin in each child who participated in its study. Then 14 children with autism were treated with oxytocin in the form of a spray twice a day for four weeks, and 18 more received a placebo. Most children also had intellectual disabilities.

It turned out that among the children receiving the active drug, the average improvement corresponded to 10 points (on the well-known Social Reaction Scale), while the condition of the children receiving the placebo improved by 3 points.

It turned out that children who had a lower oxytocin level before the study began to benefit greatly. Thus, the level of oxytocin in the blood can be a biological sign that will allow scientists to predict how the child will react to the introduction of the hormone.

Earlier in her works, Parker showed that, despite the higher levels of oxytocin in the body of autistics, in many children it is too different, both in patients and in healthy individuals. In addition, children with low levels of oxytocin, not suffering from autism, are also more likely to experience social disorders.

Therefore, it can be assumed that the verification of the effectiveness of treatment with oxytocin depends not on whether the child suffers from autism, but from the natural initial level of the hormone.

Placebo effect

This conclusion can be extremely useful in determining whether a child is treated with oxytocin, but Parker's new article in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences also contains some unexpected results.

She found that among the children who used the placebo, those who had the lowest levels of oxytocin at the beginning of the study benefited most. Moreover, the body of these children began to produce more of their own "love hormone". According to Parker, this increases the likelihood that the placebo effect in a variety of conditions can indirectly lead to increased production of oxytocin.

The need for additional research

Currently, some scientists carry out similar, but much more extensive studies, and the work of Parker shows what they need to pay attention to. Professor Antonio Hardan, who has clinical practice for children with autism, says he will not support the idea of treating children with oxytocin only based on Parker's research, but will do so if a larger project confirms the results.