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Pheromones: There Really Is Chemistry Between People by Unknown
Reprinted from Vol. XVII, No. 10 (c) 1999 DKT International, Chapel Hill, North Carolina. All Rights Reserved. March, 1999
Did you ever meet someone and feel an immediate and irresistible attraction?
Of course you have. So, how did you explain it? Was it the piercing eyes?
The sexy accent? The sensuous lips? The gentle touch?
Or was it simply "the chemistry?"
After years of generally being relegated to the File 13 of scientific
research, that ages-old answer now may be emerging as a powerful factor in
explaining sexual attraction.
Recent studies suggest that human beings - like other animals - produce,
send out and respond to odorless substances called pheromones. And some
researchers are looking into the theory that these substances may be the
reason that you choose or reject a potential partner.
Pheromones have been documented to influence sexual behavior in animals -
promoting attraction between male and female moths, snakes, monkeys,
hamsters, and many other creatures. In these animals, pheromones are
detected by the vomeronasal organ in the nasal cavity.
Scientists now have uncovered evidence that humans may also have this
ability.
In a study recently reported in Nature magazine, Martha K. McClintock and
Kathleen Stern of the Department of Psychology at the University of Chicago
found evidence that humans detect and are influenced by pheromones. They
defined pheromones as "airborne chemical signals that are released by an
individual into the environment and which affect the physiology and
behavior of other members of the same species."
The researchers have not yet delved into sexual attractiveness per se.
Their method first sought to determine if pheromones do, indeed, exist in
humans. To do so, they rubbed pads with sweat from the armpits of nine
women beneath the noses of 20 other women. For two months, half the women
inhaled sweat from women in the early phase of their menstrual cycle
(pre-ovulation) and the other half from a later phase (during ovulation).
Although the volunteers could not detect any odors, the results were
significant: The menstrual cycles of the women who inhaled sweat from the
early menstrual phase shortened by an average of 1.7 days a month. In some,
it was shortened by as much as 14 days. Women who inhaled sweat from the
later phase experienced a lengthening of their menstrual cycles by an
average of 1.4 days a month. Some grew longer by as much as 12 days.
Based on these results, the researchers concluded that there is strong
evidence that human pheromones do exist. And this may explain why some
women who live or work together report that their menstrual cycles tend to
synchronize.
Further research is under way to determine how pheromones influence
behavior, including sexual attraction.
Other Sex-Scent Indications
Although pheromones are odorless, other studies have been conducted on
scents that can be detected. Alan R. Hirsch, MD, author of Scentsational
Sex, conducted studies on both men and women to find out what specific
scents caused sexual arousal.
Hirsch, a neurologist, psychiatrist, and neurological director of the Smell
and Taste Treatment and Research Foundation in Chicago, became interested
in the connection between odors and sex when he observed that about 18
percent of patients who lose their sense of smell develop sexual
dysfunction. He wondered if the inability to detect odors might have some
direct connection with sexual response.
To find out, Hirsch recruited 25 male medical students and used penile
blood flow as a measure of arousal. Testing the students with different
aromas, including perfumes, floral and food odors, Hirsch was astounded by
his finding: "Much to our surprise," he writes, "...cinnamon buns caused
greater changes in penile blood flow than any other odor."
Realizing the results might only indicate that medical students are hungry,
Hirsch conducted another study, this time with 31 men between the ages of
18 and 64. Using 30 scents and 46 test odors (some were combinations), his
results were as follows:
* A combination of lavender and pumpkin pie showed the greatest
measurable arousal, increasing penile blood flow by an average of 40
percent.
* Cinnamon buns were still popular, but not as much so. In combination with
licorice and doughnuts, they finished second by increasing penile blood
flow by 31.5 percent.
* A combination of pumpkin pie and doughnuts came in third, with an
increase in penile blood flow of 20 percent.
* Among the least favored odors were cranberry and chocolate.
Hirsch also found differences dependent on men's ages and characteristics.
Older men liked vanilla better than younger men. Men who said they are
having the best sex lives preferred strawberry. And men who said they have
intercourse most frequently liked lavender, Oriental spice and cola.
In fact, penile blood flow increased in response to every odor that was tested.
That wasn't the case with women.
Hirsch studied the sexual arousal of 30 women between 18 and 40 by
measuring vaginal blood flow in response to a variety of odors. The study
produced the following results:
* The preferred odor for women was Good & Plenty, a licorice candy, or a
combination of Licorice Allsorts and cucumber, which caused a 13 percent
increase in vaginal blood flow.
* A combination of lavender and pumpkin pie increased vaginal
blood flow by 11 percent.
* Women had negative responses to several odors, including cherry,
which caused an 18 percent reduction; charcoal barbecue smoke,
which caused a 14 percent reduction.
Interestingly, the study found that women aren't turned on by male
colognes: They caused a 1 percent reduction in vaginal blood flow.
No one knows exactly why men and women respond sexually as they do to
scents like these. Perhaps certain odors remind us of happier, relaxing
times or people we once knew - making us more receptive to sexual feelings.
What do these studies mean for us? Should we throw out all our perfumes,
scented soaps and colognes? Should we stop bathing and using deodorants so
our natural scents can be detected? Should we be wearing our food in
addition to eating it? Here are some suggestions:
* Experiment with scent. Have fun. For example, the next time you and your
partner make love, have a bowl of fruit salad handy. Take a slice of
strawberry, rub his lips with it and see how he responds. Caress her mouth
with a piece of banana, allowing her to inhale its odor and see how she
reacts. Try various essential oils, scented candles or massage lotions.
Find out what you like and try to find a scent that turns on both of you.
* Hirsch suggests putting some pumpkin pie, cucumber or any other food you
want in a blender and then pouring a few drops of the liquid in a test tube
with a cotton ball on the bottom. It will last a few days, so you can
inhale it many times. You also can put the liquid on your body or in your
bath.
* Try giving up all scented products for two days. Many people find the
natural smells of their sexual partners real turn-ons and are unhappy when
these odors are washed away or covered up. Find out what your partner likes
and see if you respond to each other's natural scents.
* Remember that as you grow older, your sense of smell tends to weaken.
Since women have a keener sense of smell to begin with, older men may have
more trouble detecting faint scents. But don't overdo it. Studies show that
both sexes dislike strong odors.
As Hirsch said, "If you're a woman and you want to induce male sexual
arousal, start baking. And if you're a man and you want to induce female
sexual arousal, throw away the cologne and buy some Good & Plenty."
Olfactory signals, whether from naturally produced pheromones or from
substances in our environment, apparently can be powerful tools when it
comes to sexual arousal.
Why, no one really knows.
But this is known: Humans can detect between 10,000 and 30,000 different
odors. Finding out which ones rev up your sexual engine might be worth
grinding up a few pumpkins or cucumbers - or whatever. This article appears in the following topics:
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