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.
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