What turns men into fathers? Check this out.

I welcome this news with a grain of salt:

What turns men into fathers?

Why do men suddenly turn from macho to cuddly bears around babies?

Now, a new research answers why. A study has shown that levels of oxytocin, the ‘cuddle chemical’ released into the blood during labour, also rise in new fathers.

Not just that, their bodies see a sudden surge in prolactin, a hormone more commonly linked to milk production in new mothers.

Source: TimesOfIndia.com

I welcome the fact that certain hormones act inside a man's body when a baby is born. But the danger with attributing fatherhood solely on hormonal activity is to associate fatherhood with the feminine side of parenting.

That, to me, does not do justice to fatherhood and to parenting as a whole.

Parenthood is about male and female joining together and producing offsprings, biologically, emotionally, psychologically, mentally, spiritually and across whatever dimension our gurus may think of.

Associating parenthood with the feminine side alone does not give a complete picture.

Yeah, certain hormones may soften a man's temperament in front of a baby. In fact, the knees of some macho men shake upon carrying an absolutely vulnerable baby in their arms.

But does this surge in hormonal activity lasts a lifetime? The news does not say.

What makes up a father is the entire person, not just the hormones. That ought to be clear.

Let me quote General Douglas McArthur once again:

By profession I am a soldier and take pride in that fact. But I am prouder – infinitely prouder – to be a father. A soldier destroys in order to build; the father only builds, never destroys. The one has the potentiality of death; the other embodies creation and life.

And while the hordes of death are mighty, the battalions of life are mightier still. It is my hope that my son, when I am gone, will remember me not from the battle field but in the home repeating with him our simple daily prayer, 'Our Father who art in Heaven.'

Was this statement due to oxytocin and prolactin?