Hormones, mood and affect

This chapter focuses on the role of sex hormones, particularly estrogens, androgens and progestins, as mediators of mood and affect. The limbic system, a group of brain regions highly preserved across species, is thought to be primarily responsible for the representation and processing of stimuli with emotional significance. One possibility is that testosterone, which is a major determinant of libido in men, may be less important for libido in women. The spatiotemporal patterning of the brain in action leads to thoughts, feelings and behaviors. Brain health implies not only the prevention of recognized diseases, but also the support of a vast array of brain functions and faculties. It has been said that the most important sexual organ is the brain. This truism is meant to emphasize the essential role of desire and comfort in mediating sexual awareness and expression. Brain centers mediate libido in a general way. Other brain centers influence the selection of sexual partners and the circumstances under which sexual longings are expressed. Conditions such as postpartum mood disorders and premenstrual syndrome reflect the interplay of sex steroids upon a brain vulnerable to or sensitized by psychosocial and biological factors.