How eating garlic makes your armpit sweat more attractive and other mysteries of the genetics of smell

“The past few decades have revealed that odour is shaped by our genes, hormones, health, and hygiene,” says Craig Roberts, professor of social psychology at University of Stirling in Scotland.

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Many of these factors are out of our control – but not all. A significant influence on the way we smell is the food we eat. Not only does this affect our overall aroma, but also how we are perceived, including how attractive we appear to others, according to a small but growing body of research.

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Surprisingly, though, studies suggest that while garlic definitely makes people’s breath smelly, it makes people’s armpit sweat more attractive….[M]en with little garlic consumption didn’t illicit a huge reaction [from 82 women rating their sweat scent on pleasantness, attractiveness, masculinity and intensity], but those eating a lot of garlic were perceived as very sexy. And those taking supplements were also more attractive.

“We replicated this study three times because we were really surprised,” says the scientist behind the experiment, Jan Havlíček[.]

This is an excerpt. Read the original post here