Women
CONTACTCAREER OPPORTUNITIESADVERTISE WITH USPRIVACY POLICYPRIVACY PREFERENCESTERMS OF USELEGAL NOTICE
© 2024 Pride Publishing Inc.
All Rights reserved
All Rights reserved
Don’t miss our hottest news! Sign up today for our free newsletter.
Trending Tags
By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Private Policy and Terms of Use.
A recent article on Discovery revealed the findings of a new study suggesting that women looking for romance should consider foregoing the designer perfumes, because a woman's natural scent might be all she needs.
While the study mostly focuses on the way scents affect male attraction to females, there is also some information on what causes these differing natural scents in women, and how that may alter their own levels of sexual arousal and attraction.
According to Discovery, "Recent research shows that a man's testosterone levels, which are linked with sexual interest, are significantly higher when they smell the shirt of a woman who is ovulating." This information might result in fragrances mimicking this effect being developed, as well as provide answers for basic questions pertaining to human biology.
"This is an issue that has been hotly debated: whether or not ovulation is concealed in human females," said Jon Maner, a co-author of the recent paper in Psychological Science. "In lots of other species, there are very obvious indicators, but it has long been assumed that human females didn't give off these cues."
Over the last 10 years, however, psychologists have found that ovulating women may behave differently, with a tendency to be more flirtatious, have sexual fantasies more frequently, and prefer hyper-masculine men.
In surveys, men report being more attracted to ovulating women. The new study builds on this research by measuring the response of men to a specific chemical cue.
The researchers performed two separate but related experiments. In the first scenario, the scientists gave four women plain, white T-shirts. The women wore the shirts over three days when they went to sleep. The researchers then collected the shirts in plastic bags, divided them up according to whether the woman was ovulating, and froze them.
In the second experiment, the scientists added an extra variable: fresh T-shirts that hadn't been worn by anyone.
T-shirts in hand, the scientists asked dozens of men to stick their noses into the bags. As the men sniffed the shirts, scientists sampled the participants' saliva, which was used to measure testosterone.
Men who smelled the shirts of ovulating women in the first experiment had, on average, testosterone levels that were 37 percent higher than the men who smelled the shirts of non-ovulating women.
For the second experiment, the testosterone levels of the men who smelled the T-shirts of ovulating women were, on average, 15 percent higher than men who sniffed the two other T-shirt samples.
Other studies have linked higher levels of testosterone with an increased in sexual arousal, said Maner. Whether a 37 percent or 15 percent difference in testosterone is enough to affect a man's behavior is unknown.
Another unknown is the whether a man could detect an ovulating women in a real-world situation, say a crowded bar. The two experiments were done under controlled laboratory conditions. Nevertheless, scientists say the experiments could have real world significance for potential love connections.
"The men were smelling T-shirts, not real women," said Maner. "We would expect that the odor coming from a woman will be stronger than from a T-shirt that was frozen."
Exactly how far the odor diffuses away from a woman remains to be seen. Scientists also haven't identified the specific chemical scents that stimulate increases in testosterone levels in men.
It's possible that men are directly detecting the higher levels of estrogenduring ovulation, said Jim Roney, a scientist at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Equally possible is that men are sensing other chemicals that rise and fall depending on the amount of estrogen. Scientists just don't know.
Despite the remaining unknowns, the new research marks a milestone for smell scientists.
"This is one of the first papers to show (a change in testosterone) in response to a chemical stimulus," said Roney. "It's a new area of research."
From our Sponsors
Most Popular
65 celebrities with OnlyFans accounts to thirst over
September 16 2024 4:25 AM
30 all-time greatest lesbian sex scenes in movies & where to stream them
September 10 2024 11:36 AM
30 same-sex couples who don't mind the age gap
September 10 2024 2:15 PM
25 reasons being a bottom is tougher than being a top
September 10 2024 2:44 PM
20 reasons 'straight' men hook up with guys
September 11 2024 12:59 PM
30 awkward things guys do in saunas
September 10 2024 12:01 PM
101 gay sex tips you didn't learn in sex ed class
September 09 2024 5:21 PM
Popular gay slang inspired by the animal kingdom explained
September 09 2024 11:44 AM
35 of the funniest drag queen names
September 12 2024 4:17 PM
30 sexy gay scenes in movies that have us feeling VERY h-word
September 13 2024 11:52 AM
Don’t miss our hottest news! Sign up today for our free newsletter.
Latest Stories
10 cute and cozy queer date ideas for fall and the start of Spooky Season
October 02 2024 7:32 PM
20 spicy pics from Folsom Street Fair 2024 that will have you tied up in knots
October 02 2024 6:53 PM
'Queen Charlotte' star Arsema Thomas is ready to tackle a major queer role
October 02 2024 6:36 PM