Mommy Brains May Actually Be Smarter in Many Ways

Women who are pregnant and those who may have had a child or two may know of this condition called "mom brain" wherein forgetfulness in details may set in and frustration grows in time. Chalk it up to hormones or the changing physical attributes during pregnancy, but a study shows how these changes have a huge impact on the wiring of mothers' brains. This is revealed in a study by scientists from Longwood University in Virginia and the University of Richmond, reports Pregnancy & Newborn Magazine.

Assistant Professor of Biology Adam Franssen stated that they are trying to understand and investigate the differences between the brain stuctures of moms and non-moms. In their research, they noticed that scanned brains of female rats who are pregnant hugely differed from those non-pregnant rats in terms of size. The neurons are also larger and they seem to be more equipped in looking for food for their offsprings compared to the food-hunting abilities of non-mothers.

This is quite obvious as human mothers indeed become more resourceful and creative in their ways of providing nourishment and shelter for their families. During pregnancy, mothers' brains are changing, probably hence the typical forgetfulness and sluggishness in terms  of directions and placements of things at home or at the workplace. But things get to become better as mothers adjust to their new roles and responsibilities. The neurons in their brains are rewired to be better in planning, stress-handling as well as in solving problems, which is stated in an article in Babble.

In the study, mother rats are better in memory as well. Dr. Franssen states, "Mothers have been shown to be superior at finding food and remembering where that food is stored. Mothers are [also] better at non-spatial memory-such as identifying two different kinds of food-than virgin rats. To relate this to humans, moms are much better at finding their way around a grocery store than their non-mom counterparts ... even if they can't seem to remember which Shakespeare play 'To be, or not to be' came from." 

This is probably why moms are the usual to-go person for lost items at home, or the number one organizer for things or even family activities. Consider this as a form of training for the brain to be better equipped in handling the rigors of bringing up a child or children from infancy to adulthood without major problems, if possible. No wonder moms may be smarter since a lot are also expected from them for the rest of their lifetime.