A call to mom a day keeps the stress away

 
If you're feeling stressed out and looking for something soothing, just pick up the phone and call mom.  Thinking a simple text convo with tech savvy momma might do the job?  Afraid not.

New research published in the journal Evolution and Human Behavior has found that speaking with mom over the phone or in person was associated with a drop in cortisol, a steroid hormone that is release in response to stress AND also raised levels of oxytocin, a hormone linked to desire and gratification.  However, chats with moms over text or IM had no effect.  This may explain why AML jr likes me, her mommy, to sing, rock and console her before bed over anyone else (admittedly, I love that this is the case, despite my exhaustion at the end of the day).

Authors suggested that it is the voice’s familiar tone, cadence and intonation, not the specific words spoken that have calming effects on the body.  “In an age when emailing and texting and IMing is so popular, this shows that we’re missing the important component of the human voice that is able to convey comfort,” Leslie Seltzer, an anthropologist at the University of Wisconsin and lead author of the study, told ABCNews.com. “The computer or text is just not the same as talking to someone."

Watch out moms, I think this article further confirms that YOU are just the right person for your kids to call early in the morning or in the middle of the night when life is stressing them out (boy or girl troubles, school issues, work struggles, kid/grandkid chaos, etc).  Admit it, it feels good to be needed by your kids no matter the age. :-)

To read the full article on ABC News, click here.

Send Mom to Congress contest

Are you or do you know someone who is making a difference in the school system?  Creating positive policy changes?  Fighting against budget cuts?  If so, why not get rewarded for your tireless efforts!

Parenting magazine launched the Mom Congress initiative in 2009 to celebrate and connect parents working to improve our nation’s schools.  Each month, Parenting and Parenting.com give readers and the Mom Congress members updated educational news and resources to help them make a difference and bring about positive changes for students.  The magazine has launched the third annual search for one fabulous parent advocate for each state to attend the Mom Congress on Education and Learning® Conference in Washington, D.C., this April 29 through May 1.

Parenting will select one parent from each state to attend the conference and get the opportunity to connect with national leaders in education.  The theme of the 2012 conference is “Teach Me Something New” and is dedicated to fostering the crucially important relationship between parents and their children’s teachers.  The conference will include a town hall-style discussion focused on parental engagement in education with U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan.  There will be sessions with Parenting editors, celebrity speakers, leaders from prominent education and children’s advocacy organization, and past Mom Congress delegates who will share success stories, challenges, and concerns as they work to improve our nation’s schools.

Moms leave the conference empowered and armed with new information and resources to allow them to make even more significant progress in their home state's schools.  The 2011 class of Mom Congress delegates’ accomplishments include the creation of a nationwide book drive in support of early literacy, Books Make it Better; recognition through The White House “Champions for Change” program; the improvement of several school lunch programs across the country; and the development of new educational resources and programs in nearly every state, from early science education workshops in Florida to a new parental advocacy program, Camp Educate, in California.


Enter now for a chance to be the mom attending from your state by clicking here. The last day to enter the contest is February 15.  Winners will receive roundtrip transportation and hotel accommodations in the nation’s capital for the three-day event.