Tuesday, February 4, 2014

Why it's Best not to Wear Perfume Nor Take the Pill when Looking for a Mate


Fine perfume might be more intellectual and spiritual in nature than instinctual after all. A few years back - in 2008 - there were a series of articles on olfaction and attraction shedding light on enduring sexual attraction thanks to new research on the role of the contraceptive pill. It is required reading if you wish to grasp some of the potentially thwarted "chemistry" at work when choosing not only a compatible mate, but a long-term one...

The research resulted in the practical advice not to be on the contraceptive pill when dating - and even in order to perfect the approach, not to wear fragrances in the first few weeks of getting to know someone so as to be able to olfactorily ascertain the soundness of the basis for your sexual attraction. It has to do with MHC genes compatibility - they should be not too similar, but not too dissimilar as well. These are as unique as a finger prints so there are no obvious visual predictors such as the color of skin, or race. Only your nose will tell, provided no pill is involved and perfumes do not blur the olfactory message too much although a link has been found between perfume preferences and the Major histocompatibility complex. If you and someone else consistently show similar cologne preferences, this tends to mean you have similiar MHC genes, and so are not biologically compatible actually. They should stay great buddies of yours.

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