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Scent of breastfeeding women
arouses sexual desire in other women
24 October, 2007
Smells released by breastfeeding women
and newborn babies boost the sexual
desires of other women.
Research conducted by a team of
fertility specialists say their
findings suggest that the odors
contain a substance which acts as an
aphrodisiac, supporting the
controversial theory that human
pheromones exist and can subtly affect
our behavior.
The researchers said it may be
possible to identify the chemical
responsible for the effect, and use it
to develop a treatment for women who
wish to increase their desire for sex.
The researchers from the University of
Chicago, the United States, looked at
how the smell of sweat collected from
the breast and armpits of nursing
mothers affected a group of young
women.
Half were asked to wipe pads soaked in
the sweat across their upper lip every
morning and evening for three months.
They were also asked to re-apply the
pads after showering, exercising and
wiping their mouths after eating. The
remaining half were given similar
pads, soaked in a dummy liquid.
Neither group knew what was on the
pads.
By the end of the study, those given
the sweat-soaked pads found their
desire for their partner had risen by
around 42%, while those who were
single had more sexual daydreams than
usual.
The effects were particularly striking
during the time of the month when the
women’s fertility and sex drive was at
its lowest. In contrast, libido
actually dropped among those with
dummy pads.
It is thought those given the
sweat-soaked pads were affected by the
pheromones, which are secreted by the
body to affect behavior, including
sexual attraction, on an unconscious
level.
In this case, it is thought that they
acted as a signal to other women that
food is plentiful and the environment
is safe to bring a baby into.
Having a baby at the same time as
other women would also allow the
burden of childcare to be shared.
If the key compounds in the sweat,
breast milk and baby’s saliva could be
identified and bottled, they could be
turned into a powerful aphrodisiac for
women, the study added.
Martha McClintock, a psychologist at
the University of Chicago, the United
States, told the annual meeting of the
American Society for Reproductive
Medicine: “We knew there are other
species in which the females use
social signals from other females to
help time when they become pregnant
and have offspring at optimal times,
and so we wanted to find out if that
was the case in humans.”
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