'Pregnancy' Re-Wires A Woman's Brain For Motherhood, What We Need To Know!

A new research indicates that "pregnancy" changes a woman's brain. This change could last up to two years and is said to be a change towards the mother and child bonding.

The research indicates that the brain of first time mothers got re-wired after "pregnancy." These changes in the brain are said to help moms take care of the child. The re-wiring of the brain lasts up to two years after giving birth.

In this recent study by Elseline Hoekzema and her colleagues at the Universitat Autonoma Barcelona, there is a reduction of the grey matter in the woman's brain right after "pregnancy." Hoekzema believes that the changes are set to focus on certain characteristics of mothers towards the children.

The study has been done to 25 women in the peak of "pregnancy." They have been given the magnetic resonance imaging brain scans. The researchers found that the grey matter fall on specific areas in the brain that are responsible for high functions.

These changes are not present on 20 non-pregnant women who underwent the same procedure. It seems that the changes in the brain only pertain to those have gone into "pregnancy." Dr. Susanna Carmona, who is part of the team of researches shares that these areas are part of the brain that are related to processing social cognition and these also are part of self-focused processing.

Meanwhile, it is not entirely clarified why there is a reduction of the grey matter during pregnancy. However, Hoekzema thinks that this is because the brain is wired to specialize in matters of parenthood. This may mean that women are being prepared to cater to the child's needs as early as "pregnancy" stage.

The research has then been done to some women two years right after "pregnancy." The changes in the brain are still significant which then led to the conclusion that the re-wiring of the brain will last up to two years.