Becoming a dad triggers brain plasticity similar to learning new skills: Study
Fatherhood remodels the male brain, according to before-and-after MRI scans of first-time dads. Researchers say the changes resemble experience-induced plasticity seen when people learn new skills.
Research groups at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles and Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Gregorio Marañón in Madrid scanned 40 men twice: first during their partner’s pregnancy, and again after their baby was 6 months old. The sample included 20 men in Spain and 20 in California. A control group of 17 childless men was also scanned across the same time period.
The study found several significant changes in the brains of fathers from prenatal to postpartum that did not emerge in childless men. In both the Spanish and Californian samples, fathers’ brain changes appeared in regions of the cortex that contribute to visual processing, attention and empathy toward the baby. Researchers reported overlapping trends of cortical volume reductions within the default mode network and visual networks.
The degree of brain plasticity in fathers may be linked with how much they interact with their baby. Although fathers are increasingly taking part in childcare, paternal involvement varies widely across men. That range of involvement may explain why brain changes in fathers were more subtle compared with those observed in first-time mothers. In fact, brain changes in fathers were almost half the magnitude of the changes observed in mothers.
Neuroscientists call this “experience-induced brain plasticity” — similar to brain changes that occur when you learn a new language or master a musical instrument. Previous research has shown gay male fathers who are primary caregivers show stronger connections between parenting brain regions when viewing their infants, compared with secondary male caregivers.
Researchers note it’s not yet clear whether simply spending more time parenting changes fathers’ brains, or if the changes occur more in men who are more motivated to spend time parenting. The loss of volume in cortical gray matter suggests the brain region is becoming more dense, which makes it more efficient for parental acceptance and warmth.
The study adds to a sparse but growing body of research on how parenting shapes the male brain without pregnancy. Separate studies have found that men with children show younger-looking brains in middle age compared with childless peers. Men with two children had an estimated brain age 0.6 years younger, and men with three children 0.7 years younger — similar to the benefit of exercising 2.5 hours a week.
