From a study of women who were breast feeding:
"...women with regular partners
experienced a 24 percent increase in sexual desire as reported on a standard psychological survey. Women without
partners experienced a 17 percent increase in sexual fantasies after exposure for the
period."
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releas...-rfc100604.php
The entire issue
of Hormones and Behavior is focussed on the sense of smell, hormones, and
behavior.
JVK
I think it has to do with oxytocin.
Breastfeeding women are likely
to have higher concentrations of lactobacillus acidophilus, breve, and bifida strains on their skin (as are
infants), which could be a co-factor in producing the purported breast-feeding pheromone in the armpit. So we don't
know yet that it comes from their fresh sweat, per se. I'm ready to buy a barrel of the stuff,
whatever it is; or bribe my lactating friends to let me rub my head under their arms. For species survival purposes,
it makes sense that babies, particularly well nourished ones, would lead to more babies, for a couple of reasons.
The pendulous human female breasts
are actually modified apocrine (scent/pheromone-producing) glands. The breasts originate in the axillae (underarm).
I have proposed that pendulous female breast development was required as humans lost fur, which traps and amplifies
some very important chemical signals in other mammals. The development of pendulous female breasts would compensate
for hair/fur loss by providing increased area both for production and distribution.
The only other theory
that I know about for the development of pendulous breasts is one attributed to Desmond Morris, who apparently
thinks that they developed to mimic the fleshy buttocks (as men needed a better/comparable visual signal when sexual
intercourse became a frontal approach event).
Compare the two theories--one visually based with no biological
basis; the other based on olfactory conditioning with the completely detailed pathway from gene activation to
hormonal changes that influence behavior.
JVK
If you guys remember Commercaire
from Enhanced Air Technoligies, it was the phermone system marketed to Casinos and stores to keep people inside
longer. The first article I read about it said the pheromone was based on female breast pheromones to recreate the
comfort of breastfeeding as an infant.
Funny they never found the same result.
Interesting. Can you find the article or reference it?Quote:
Originally Posted by einstein
I found the article again.
Looks like I misread it the first time. Here's the quote I was thinking of.
Quote:
Yesterday, the company
unveiled Commercaire pheromone, its synthetic compound that mimics the maternal sense of comfort piped to
children when they're crying or otherwise unhappy.
Filtered into a store through air ducts or a small fan under
the cashier's desk, for example, the odorless substance is meant to relax customers so they stay longer, and buy
more.
However, Nigel Malkin, the upstart firm's director of development, is quick to note that the pheromone
will only put customers at ease, not force them to do anything against their will.
"It doesn't put people into a
buying frenzy or anything like that," he said. "This will just make them feel more relaxed and give them a fond
memory of the environment they've been exposed to. That can breed customer loyalty."
Thanks! Still interesting.