Oxytocin is an FDA-approved medication for childbirth, but may also have benefits in alcohol addiction therapy, according to recent research.
Article at a Glance:
Oxytocin is a natural human hormone involved in childbirth and emotional relationships.
Recent studies have shown that oxytocin may play a role in helping people overcome addiction.
Oxytocin may decrease a person’s desire to drink alcohol.
Oxytocin Therapy for Alcoholism Treatment
Could a hormone dubbed the “cuddle chemical” be the answer to curbing alcoholism? A group of long-tailed research participants may have the answer.
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Innovative research onalcoholism treatmentcomes on the heels of staggering alcohol addiction statistics: Approximately14.1 million American adultscurrently have a diagnosedalcohol use disorder. With such a large part of the population struggling withthis condition, scientists and researchers are testing potential new treatment methods for alcohol abuse. Pioneering these scientific breakthroughs for humans are test participants with four small paws.
A 2019 studyled by teams from the National Institutes of Health and The Scripps Research Institute tested whether doses of oxytocin, a naturally-occurring hormone, could reduce alcohol consumption among alcohol-dependent rats — but did it work? More importantly, would oxytocin therapy work for a human?
What Is Oxytocin?
Oxytocinis a hormone that is produced in the hypothalamus and released by the pituitary gland in the human body. It is known for its roles in childbirth, uterine contractions and lactation, and it also plays a significant role in human relationships.
Also a chemical messenger in the brain, oxytocin is nicknamed the “love hormone” andis involved in interpersonal bonding, trust, recognition and sexual arousal. Oxytocin plays a role in the regulation of both the stress and reward, or pleasure, systems in the brain.
Oxytocin already shows promise as a potential hormone therapy method for alcohol use disorder.Oxytocin has been shownto decrease drug and alcoholwithdrawal symptoms, drug-seeking behaviors and drug consumption with several substances, including alcohol andopioids. However, the goal of the 2019 study was to further understand oxytocin’s effects on alcohol dependence in particular, to see whether oxytocin could be a viable therapy option forhumans who struggle with alcohol addiction.
How Would Oxytocin Treat Alcohol Use Disorder?
Researchers from the National Institutes of Health and The Scripps Research Institutehypothesizedthat oxytocin could normalize the maladaptive changes in the brain that occur with alcohol dependence and thus reduce alcohol use behaviors.
The study results show that oxytocin discouraged excess drinking in the rats that were dependent on alcohol, and this effect was not seen in the control group’s rats, which weren’t dependent on alcohol.
How did this effect happen?Researchers notedthat the oxytocin blocked the signals of the neurotransmitter gamma-aminobutyric acid, or GABA, and prevented alcohol from accessing specific parts of the brain that cause alcohol’s intoxicationeffects. The oxytocin blocked GABA signaling in the central nucleus of the amygdala, which is the part of the brain involved in alcohol dependence. This decreased the rats’ motivation to drink alcohol.
Researchers believe that this study provides evidence to support that disruptions in the oxytocin system could be connected to an alcohol use disorder. Targeting this system with oxytocin therapy could be a novel treatment approach for people who struggle with alcohol addiction.
Oxytocin Cancels Out the Effects of Intoxication
To understand the results of this study and how oxytocin could treatalcohol abuse, it’s also important to understandhow alcohol affects the body. Alcohol has depressant and sedative effects, meaning that alcohol intoxication:
- Slows brain functioning and neural activity
- Impairs a person’s judgment
- Lessens inhibitions
- Impairs physical coordination
A different group of researchers from the University of Sydney studied impaired motor functioning or physical coordination. Inthis 2015 studythat paved the way for the American research in 2019, the rats in the control group were given no alcohol, other rats were given alcohol only, and the third group of rats were first given oxytocin and then alcohol.
“In the rat equivalent of a sobriety test, the rats given alcohol and oxytocin passed with flying colours, while those given alcohol without oxytocin were seriously impaired,”remarked one of the researchers, Dr. Bowen.
Bowen explained this effect further, saying, “Alcohol impairs your coordination by inhibiting the activity of brain regions that provide fine motor control. Oxytocin prevents this effect to the point where we can’t tell from their behavior that the rats are actually drunk. It’s a truly remarkable effect.”
However, oxytocin therapy for humans has yet to be an established treatment. Although sufficient amounts of oxytocin might make someone appear less drunk than they are, their blood alcohol levels would be the same. Oxytocin would inhibit the intoxicating effects of alcohol, but the alcohol would still be in the body, and wouldn’t leave the system any faster than usual.
Hope is on the horizon, though. According to the researchers, oxytocin can decrease alcohol cravings and consumption overall. Because oxytocin is already a naturally occurring hormone in the human body, hormone therapy with oxytocin holds promise for future treatment applications among people living with alcohol addiction.
Oxytocin Withdrawal and Risks
Oxytocin is currentlyFDA-approvedfor use, but only in labor and delivery in pregnant women. It is not a controlled substance and therefore has no known risk of abuse, addiction, dependence or withdrawal.
Side effects of oxytocin generally reflect the dose being given; the higher the dose, the higher the risk of side effects. Theseinclude:
- Nausea and vomiting
- Slow heart rate
- Uterine contractions in women
How To Know if You Have an Alcohol Addiction
It can be difficult to determine where to draw the line between regular alcohol use and alcohol addiction. These alcohol addiction quizzes can help you evaluate your alcohol use to get a better idea of your risk of alcohol addiction. Use the results of these quizzes to inform a conversation with your doctor or a therapist about startingrehab for alcoholism.
Related Topic: Is My Loved One Addicted to Alcohol?
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