Check Up: Do Pheromones exists in humans?

Dear Readers,

Naomi is an 18-year-old college student, who has become highly interested in the idea of natural sexual-attraction hormones, pheromones.

She asked Check Up what level of attraction to another person, based on conditioning, is ideal, by social standards, and how much do these pheromones play a part in sexual attraction.

A pheromone is a chemical produced by one gender of a species, which influences the behaviour of another member of the species. They are behaviour-altering agents. They act outside the body of the individual and impact the behaviour of another individual.

There is no conclusive answer to Naomi's question. Although research in other animal groups seem to strongly indicate the presence and active use of pheromones in attracting partners for mating purposes, there is no conclusive proof these chemicals truly occur in humans, though expensive perfumes claim to contain the essence of pheromones.

It has been shown that pheromones are a means of communicating silently and non-verbally, transmitting chemical signals through the air, for many animals. The purpose of pheromones production is related to mating or defence of territory.

Pheromones are the chemical equivalent of text messages and have been reported in animals. However, they are yet to be properly documented in the human species. This fact does not seem to have stopped news sellers and perfume makers from referring to their existence, especially for use to boost product sales in the perfume industry. The message is: This product will make you sexually irresistible.

Researchers have observed what they believe to be the effect of 'human primer pheromones'. Compounds extracted from female armpits can affect the menstrual cycle of women exposed to them. Nursing infants turn to a lactating mother's breast, which suggests scent molecules play some part in driving the response.

Seemingly, the process of courtship is so complex in humans that it is almost impossible to distinguish scent triggers from visual and social signs. It is believed we may have once had receptors in the nose which detected pheromones but, with the genesis of colour vision, the genes for the pheromone receptors became recessive or lost.

Perhaps as intellect developed along with a complex brain, pheromones were no longer specifically needed as a mating drive.

Sex pheromones are present in animal and insect species, and signal mating behaviour or dominance. The odours released signify aggression, defence, alarm or sexual attraction and direct appropriate behaviour.

In these animals, chemical signalling (pheromones) find genetically different mates, avoid inbreeding and ensures a high-quality mate to reproduce with.

Humans are very dependent on visual clues but, when in close proximity, smells also influence sexual behaviour. Steroids from the armpits of humans are thought to be pheromones, which influence our behaviour and can synchronise the menstrual cycle in women.

Men also produce androstenone, secreted from their armpits, which is thought to have different responses to women, depending on where they are in their menstrual cycle.

In insects and other simpler animals, pheromones are secreted and trigger many types of documented behaviour including:

• To follow a food trail

• Alarm

• Sexual arousal

• Territory mapping

• Mother-baby bonding

• To back off

Pheromones are often used against insects to attract males into a trap to prevent breeding. So, pheromones do exist and are well displayed outside of human beings. The thinking is that they exist in humans also and have some limited effect on behaviour. Maybe more? We don't know. A lot of research remains to be done in this area.

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AJM