The Smell of Love

Forget the expensive French perfumes. If a woman really wants to reel a man in, all she needs to do is dab a dose of odorless pheromones strategically to her pulse points, and men will shower her with affection. At least that's what the results of one small study show.  When it comes to sexual attraction, many scientist's believe that our nose knows what’s best for us. However, how exactly does our nose relate to sexual attraction? From the nose, the pheromone travels to a part of the brain involved in emotions and sex drive.  Pheromones are chemicals that are secreted in our sweat (and other bodily fluids) that are believed to release neurotransmitters that directly modify the behavior of the opposite sex, such as triggering sexual excitement. The behavior effects of pheromones apparently occur unconsciously. That is, people respond behaviorally to certain chemicals in human skins even though they describe them as odorless.

Exposure to these chemicals, especially chemicals from opposite sex, alters skin temperature and other autonomic responses and increase activity in the hypothalamus. For example, “the smell of woman’s sweat-especially if the woman was near her time of ovulation-increases a man’s testosterone secretion.”  Armpit sweat broken down by bacteria may not sound very appealing, but that's the origin of pheromones, those elusive, odorless chemicals given off in response to sexual stimulation or even romantic fantasy. In animals including mice, dogs, and insects, these chemicals attract the opposite sex and initiate mating behavior. 

Pheromones are linked to some of the most crucial stages in our lives. The best-documented effect of a human pheromone relates to the timing of women’s menstrual cycle. Women who spend much time together find that their menstrual cycle becomes more synchronized, unless they are taking birth control pill. In the animal world, pheromones are individual scent "prints" found in urine or sweat that dictate sexual behavior and attract the opposite sex. They help animals identify each other and choose a mate with an immune system different enough from their own to ensure healthy offspring. They have a special organ in their noses called the vomeronasal organ (VNO) that detects this odorless chemical.

The video below describes what are pheromones and what exactly causes the humans to be attracted to the opposite sex. It explains a study how people that use certain pheromones such as perfumes, help humans become more attracted to other people. It also explains the differences between the pheromones of humans and animals.