New research finds that men's cerebral cortex shrinks when they are fathers, losing 1% or 2% of their volume.

A recent paper published in September 2022, in the journal Cerebral Cortex, concluded that the cerebral cortex of men atrophies and loses 1% or 2%
of their volume.

More than a dozen previous studies have shown that after becoming a mother, the structure of a woman's brain changes
.

At first glance, brain atrophy may seem like a bad thing, but in fact it shows that the brain structure has been improved to make the connection between father and child stronger and more effective
.

The academics used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to collect brain data from 40 heterosexual novice dads, half of them from Spain and the other half from the United States
.

After pooling everyone's data, two experimenters compared the size, thickness, and structural characteristics
of the brains of three groups of men.

Part of the reason may be that new dad brain plasticity isn't as obvious
as new mom.

After comparing it to similar studies of new moms, the study found no change
in the limbic subcortical network of novice dads.

Still, we can't prove that fathers aren't affected by parenthood just because they weren't pregnant and can't feel their children growing and developing in their bodies
.

More research is needed to focus on the visual brain region and its role after parenthood, but that finding dovetails with the findings of a 2020 study that found that fathers perform visual memory tasks
better than childless men.

"These findings may indicate that the visual system plays a unique role in assisting fathers in identifying their children and giving corresponding feedback, and further research is needed to confirm this hypothesis
.

"Understanding how changes in brain structure associated with paternity translate into actual behaviors or outcomes of parenting is a largely unexplored subject that opens up exciting avenues
for future research.

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