Until now it was known that fathers had less testosterone than men without children, but it was not known if it was a consequence or a cause. Does having children reduce testosterone or does having low testosterone promote having children? A group of researchers has shown that having children reduces the amount of this hormone to keep the couple stable and take better care of the offspring .
Since 1983 in the Philippine city of Cebu, of almost one million inhabitants, a long-term investigation has been carried out. The researchers analyzed the general health, nutrition, medical care and survival of the children of the 3,000 women who participated in the study and who were pregnant that same year for years. Years later, a group of anthropologists has studied about 600 male children of these women. Specifically, they measured their salivary testosterone levels in 2005, when the men were 21 years old, and in 2009, when many of them were already parents.
The results published in the journal ” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences ” have led to a clear conclusion: having children reduces men’s testosterone. In fact, according to the data, between the ages of 21 and 26, testosterone levels in men without children fell by 12 percent, while in those who were fathers it fell by 26 percent .
Why does the testosterone level drop?
The reason for this drop is the function of testosterone itself. This sex hormone is the main male and is associated with secondary sexual characteristics (muscle growth, increased amount of hair, etc.) and ultimately the fight for the partner. Thus, as one of the lead researchers, Christopher Kuzawa, explains, ” The drop in testosterone appears to be due to a biological adjustment that helps men change their priorities as boys get older .”
The study also revealed that testosterone levels were lower in men who spent more time caring for their children. Likewise, the lowest levels of this hormone were found in parents whose children were less than a month old.
