Oxytocin is a hormone produced within the pituitary gland in the brain. Oxytocin controls key aspects of the reproductive system including childbirth and lactation (production of milk).
During childbirth oxytocin stimulates the muscles of the uterus to contract and also increases production of prostaglandins (a type of fatty acid) which increases the contractions further. During breastfeeding oxytocin promotes the movement of milk into the breast, allowing it to be excreted by the nipples.
Oxytocin has also been shown to be important in some aspects of human behaviours including sexual arousal, recognition, trust, anxiety and mother–infant bonding. As a result, oxytocin has been called the 'love hormone' or 'cuddle chemical'.
Some researchers believe that autistic individuals have abnormal levels of oxytocin or that their bodies are poor at processing the oxytocin that they do have. They believe that this may cause or increase some of the difficulties that autistic people face (such as difficulty making eye contact and poor emotion recognition skills).
These researchers have suggested that taking synthetic oxytocin, via a nasal inhaler or an intravenous infusion, may help to overcome some of those problems.
The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) made the following recommendation.
"Do not use oxytocin for the management of core symptoms of autism in adults." (NICE, 2012)
There is a small amount of high quality research evidence (18 group studies) and a very small amount of low quality research (four single-case design studies with three or more participants) into the use of oxytocin for autistic individuals.
This research suggests that oxytocin may be an effective way to help some autistic adolescents and adults with some issues (such as difficulty making eye contact and poor emotion recognition skills). There is insufficient research to determine if oxytocin can help them with other issues (such as repetitive and restricted behaviours, interests and activities).
However we believe that many of the studies undertaken to date do not really constitute proper trials into the effectiveness or otherwise of oxytocin as a way to help autistic people. Rather they are semi-theoretical studies, the results of which may have no relevance in the real world.
At this stage, we do not know whether oxytocin will have any benefits nor whether there are any risks involved. For this reason we do not feel that oxytocin can be considered a valid intervention for autistic people.
There is a need for more research into oxytocin which uses scientifically robust, experimental methodologies with larger numbers of more diverse participants. That research should investigate whether oxytocin is more or less effective than other interventions designed to achieve the same aims. It should also investigate whether specific individuals are more likely to benefit from oxytocin than other individuals, the appropriate dosages to use etc.
At this stage, we believe that oxytocin should only be used under strictly controlled conditions and under the guidance (and responsibility for prescribing) of a specialist with skill and experience in its use.
Please read our Disclaimer on Autism Interventions
Oxytocin is sometimes given to women experiencing difficulties in childbirth. It may be given to them if their labour has not started naturally or it can be used to strengthen their contractions to aid childbirth. It is sometimes given to women to speed up delivery of the placenta and reduce the risk of heavy bleeding. It may also be used to help women produce milk during breastfeeding.
Some researchers have suggested that some autistic individuals have abnormal levels of oxytocin or that their bodies are poor at processing the oxytocin that they do have. They believe that those people may benefit from taking synthetic oxytocin. For example, Parker et al (2017) suggested that
“… individuals with ASD who have pronounced OXT signaling deficits may benefit the most from OXT treatment.”
Some researchers believe that synthetic oxytocin can be used help autistic individuals who have problems that may be caused by oxytocin deficiencies (such as difficulty making eye contact and poor emotion recognition skills).
There have been various claims made for the use of oxytocin for autistic people. For example,
Oxytocin is a hormone produced within the pituitary gland in the brain. It acts on organs in the body including the breast, uterus and testes. Oxytocin controls key aspects of the reproductive system including childbirth and lactation (production of milk). It also affects some aspects of human behaviour including sexual arousal, recognition and mother-child bonding.
During childbirth oxytocin stimulates the muscles of the uterus to contract and also increases production of prostaglandins (a type of fatty acid) which increase the contractions further. During breastfeeding oxytocin promotes the movement of milk into the breast, allowing it to be excreted by the nipples. Oxytocin also plays a role in the production of testosterone by the testes and the movement of sperm.
Oxytocin is sometimes given to induce labour if it has not started naturally or it can be used to strengthen contractions to aid childbirth. It is sometimes given to speed up delivery of the placenta and reduce the risk of heavy bleeding. It may also be used to aid help women produce milk during breastfeeding.
Oxytocin has also been shown to be important in some aspects of human behaviours including sexual arousal, recognition, trust, anxiety and mother–infant bonding. As a result, oxytocin has been called the 'love hormone' or 'cuddle chemical'.
Oxytocin is sold under a variety of brand names, each of which may come in different strengths and be administered in different ways.
Please note: some brands of oxytocin are not licensed for use in the UK or are restricted in how and where they may be used. For example, the administration of oxytocin via a nasal inhaler is not currently licensed within the UK.
The dosage of oxytocin to use will depend on the nature of the condition being treated, the body weight of the patient, the brand of oxytocin being used and the treatment mechanism.
There is currently no agreement on the correct dosage of oxytocin to use for autistic people.
In the studies we identified, the dosages of oxytocin varied from 16 IU (international unit) to 48 IU per day. In some studies, the oxytocin was only administered once, in some studies it was administered daily for up to three months.
The cost of using oxytocin will depend on a number of factors including the supplier, the brand, the way it is administered, the dosage, and the length and frequency of treatment.
According to the British National Formulary (BNF) website accessed on 29 September 2017, the NHS indicative price for two of the commonly used injectable forms was as follows
The amount of time it takes to use oxytocin will depend on a number of factors including the overall length of treatment, the frequency of treatments and the time taken to administer a single dose.
There is currently no agreement on the correct length of treatment or frequency of treatment dosage of oxytocin to use for autistic people.
In the studies we identified, administration via a nasal inhaler took a few moments whereas administration via an intravenous infusion took up to four hours. In the case of the intravenous infusion, more time would have been required for travel to and from the hospital. In some studies, the oxytocin was only administered once, in some studies it was administered daily for up to three months.
According to the BNF website, accessed on 29 September 2017, there are a number of potential side effects when using oxytocin but these are mostly related to the use of infusions or injections during childbirth so may not be relevant to autistic people.
Common or very common side effects may include arrhythmia (irregular heartbeat); headache; nausea; vomiting.
According to the Society for Endocrinology website, accessed on 29 September 2017,
“At present, the implications of having too much oxytocin are not clear. High levels have been linked to benign prostatic hyperplasia, a condition which affects the prostate in more than half of men over the age of 50. This may cause difficulty in passing urine.”
There are some contraindications (something which makes a particular treatment or procedure potentially inadvisable for certain groups of people) for oxytocin. For example, according to Drugs.com website, accessed on 29 September 2017,
“A total of 284 drugs (2816 brand and generic names) are known to interact with oxytocin”.
This means that anyone taking oxytocin should take extra care in case it reacts badly with one of those other drugs.
There is also some research which suggests that oxytocin may actually increase fear and anxiety in some people rather than reducing it. For example, according to Watanabe et al (2014),
“Some previous studies with [typically developing] participants reported that oxytocin increased defensive responses to negative emotional stimuli and induced avoidance of positive stimuli in a certain condition. These studies imply that repeated administration of oxytocin might induce highly functioning individuals with ASD to hold overdefensive attitudes to emotionally negative information.”
Oxytocin is a powerful drug with some potential side effects and contradictions. For this reason it should only be obtained from an appropriately qualified medical professional.
Please note: the use of oxytocin via nasal inhalers is currently unlicensed within the UK. The other delivery mechanisms (injection and infusion) are only licenced for use within hospital settings in the UK.
Oxytocin is a powerful drug with some potential side effects and contradictions. For this reason it should only be obtained from a qualified medical professional, such as an endocrinologist (a doctor specialising in medicine that relates to the endocrine system, which is the system that controls hormones).
According to Alvares et al (2017), intravenous oxytocin was first synthesised and used to induce labour in childbirth in the 1950s.
The use of oxytocin as an intervention for autistic people was first tried by Professor Eric Hollander and colleagues at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York in 1983.
They drew upon the findings from animal studies pointing to the role of oxytocin and vasopressin in excessive grooming and repetitive behaviors and investigated the influence of oxytocin infusion on repetitive behaviors in autism.
We have identified more than 20* studies into the effectiveness of oxytocin for autistic people published in English-language, peer-reviewed journals.
These studies included more than 500 individuals aged from three years old to 56 years old. However, only three of these studies looked at primary school children, the majority looked at adults and adolescents.
All of the group studies compared oxytocin with a placebo and the dosages of oxytocin varied from 16 IU (international unit) to 48 IU per day. Approximately half of the group studies used a single dose on a single day and approximately half used multiple doses (usually one or two a day) over several weeks (between 4 to 12 weeks). One of the single case design studies increased the dosage from 8 IU to 16 IU and then to 24 IU over several months. The majority of studies administered oxytocin via a nasal spray but three of them administered it via an intravenous drip.
*Please note: We have not included studies with fewer than three autistic participants or which did not report behavioural or cognitive outcomes. So, for example, we have not included studies such as Domes et al. (2013) which only reported on changes in brain activity.
There are a number of limitations to all of the research studies published to date. For example:
We believe it is worth noting that many of the studies we identified do not really constitute proper trials into the effectiveness or otherwise of oxytocin as an intervention for autistic people. Rather they are semi-theoretical studies, the results of which may have no relevance in the real world.
For a comprehensive list of potential flaws in research studies, please see ‘Why some autism research studies are flawed’.
There is a small amount of high quality research evidence (18 group studies) and a very small amount of low quality research (four single-case design studies with three or more participants) into the use of oxytocin for autistic individuals.
This research suggests that oxytocin may be an effective way to help some autistic adolescents and adults with some issues (such as difficulty making eye contact and poor emotion recognition skills). There is insufficient research to determine if oxytocin can help them with other issues (such as repetitive and restricted behaviours, interests and activities).
However we believe that many of the studies we identified do not really constitute proper trials into the effectiveness or otherwise of oxytocin as an intervention for autistic people. Rather they are quasi-theoretical studies, the results of which may have no relevance in the real world.
At this stage, we do not know whether oxytocin will have any benefits nor whether there are any risks involved. For this reason we do not feel that oxytocin can be considered a valid intervention for autistic people.
There is a need for more research into oxytocin which uses scientifically robust, experimental methodologies with larger numbers of more diverse participants. That research should
This section provides details of scientific studies into the effectiveness of oxytocin for autistic people which have been published in English-language, peer-reviewed journals.
If you know of any other publications we should list on this page please email info@informationautism.org
Please note that we are unable to supply publications unless we are listed as the publisher. However, if you are a UK resident you may be able to obtain them from your local public library, your college library or direct from the publisher.
This section provides details of other publications on this topic.
You can find more publications on this topic in our publications database.
If you know of any other publications we should list on this page please email info@informationautism.org
Please note that we are unable to supply publications unless we are listed as the publisher. However, if you are a UK resident you may be able to obtain them from your local public library, your college library or direct from the publisher.