Things you probably didn’t know about motherhood

Today, children across the world shower their mothers with love, and moms also take some time to reflect on their role as mothers.

In celebration of motherhood, let’s take a look at five things you probably didn’t know about motherhood:

• Motherhood literally changes a woman forever. It’s been scientifically proven that the hormones that flood an expectant mother’s brain during pregnancy permanently alters her brain.

• You and your mom share more than a bond. The cells that a mother and baby exchange via the umbilical cord during pregnancy, can remain in the mother’s body for years, even decades.

• A mother’s love is crucial for brain development. Studies have shown that children with nurturing mothers have larger hippocampal capacity than those who grow up without motherly affection. The size of the hippocampus is directly linked to learning and memory.

• Children get their intelligence from their mothers. According to researchers, it’s a mother’s DNA that determines how smart her children are – not the father.

• Hearing your mom’s voice is just as soothing as getting a hug from her. Researchers have found that the sound of a mother’s voice – even over the phone – has the same calming effect as a hug. Both actions release the happy hormone oxytocin.

• A mother’s voice is the sound that kick-starts language development. Brain scans have revealed that, while babies reacted to all women’s voices, only the mother’s voice triggered the language learning parts of the brain.

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