Human Smell and Its Effects

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Human Smell and Its Effects

• By Emily Ramser and Jane Cornett

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Did You Ever Wonder...

• Why do women tend to end up on his side of the
  bed, or wear his shirts while hes away?
• Why does a childs security blanket or teddy bear
  lose its appeal when washed?
• Why do the menstrual cycles of women who live or
  work together become synchronized?

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Pheromones

• Chemicals used for communication.
• First pheromone discovered was a sex attractant
  for silkworm moths in 1956.
• Male humans secrete pheromone called Androstenone.

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Vomeronasal Organs (VNOs)

• Where signals are first picked up.
• Located just behind the nostrils.
• Signals travel from here to the accessory
  olfactory bulb, then to the brain.

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Effects of Odors

• Accelerate puberty
• Control menstrual cycles
• Influence sexual orientation
• Distinguish loved ones from strangers
• Allow mothers and infants to bond
• Affects how often we have sex and with whom
• Influence brain development
• Influence what we remember and how we learn

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Effects on Menstruation

• Research showed that college women who lived in
  the same dorm developed synchronized cycles.
• A study on rats found that pheromones could
  either delay or advance cycles.

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Androstenone

• Secreted by males when they sweat
• Causes an unconscious sexual response in women
• Studies have been conducted to test its effects
  on women

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Odors are the Spice of Life!