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Chemical emitted by babies could make men more docile, women more aggressive

science.org

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Re: Chemical emitted by babies could make men more docile, women more aggressive

#31

Post by koheripbal »

dopa42365 wrote: post #4

Also found in rotten horse meat and insect cadavers and that's enough scrolling pubmed for me today. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34653803/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34738202/

I don't know if this is the same chemical that is released by decaying humans, but the few times I was exposed to decaying human bodies (forgotten elderly people in apartment complexes), I felt an overwhelming calming feeling.

The smell is overwhelming, but I specifically remember the feeling it created.

Re: Chemical emitted by babies could make men more docile, women more aggressive

#32

Post by koolba »

colechristensen wrote: post #6
dr_dshiv wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For serious? The top of my kids heads smelled intoxicating for the first 6-9 months. There is still a special scent but not quite the same. And I smell it on other babies, too. It’s like smelling breast milk, but emanating from the Fontainelle

Taste and smell are definitely not consistent between people.

I’ve never tasted a baby but they definitely have a distinctive smell.

Re: Chemical emitted by babies could make men more docile, women more aggressive

#33

Post by abrowne »

mensetmanusman wrote: post #22

Babies are funny, my 7 month old is only making noises while breathing in. I wish more of our language had breathing-in based sounds, it could double our information transfer rate!

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Implosive_consonant

Re: Chemical emitted by babies could make men more docile, women more aggressive

#34

Post by Railsify »

RyJones wrote: post #29

Used to be a new father; can confirm. Women who would not pay attention to me without a baby would stop me on the street to coo over a babe in arms.

I would guess they decided to approach you before they smelled the baby. How close do you have to be to smell a baby. If they were close enough to smell I suspect the had already approached you by the strictest definition of approach.

Re: Chemical emitted by babies could make men more docile, women more aggressive

#36

Post by alliao »

rp1 wrote: post #3

I don’t know if this counts as a pheromone, but babies definitely emit _something_. As a recent father, I have had numerous people remark on how wonderful babies smell after smelling my child. I can’t smell anything. People who can smell this particular smell seem very perplexed that I can’t smell it.

the worst chemical warfare my kid did on me was when they were being breastfed. No matter how much sleep I had, no matter how energetic I felt, as soon as IT started latching and sucking away I just get so sleepy, always had to walk away to get anything done, otherwise I would've just napped right there and then!

Re: Chemical emitted by babies could make men more docile, women more aggressive

#37

Post by chapium »

rp1 wrote: post #3

I don’t know if this counts as a pheromone, but babies definitely emit _something_. As a recent father, I have had numerous people remark on how wonderful babies smell after smelling my child. I can’t smell anything. People who can smell this particular smell seem very perplexed that I can’t smell it.

Puppies also have puppy smell. After having a puppy, I’m convinced that smell is urine.

Re: Chemical emitted by babies could make men more docile, women more aggressive

#38

Post by serverlessmom »

koheripbal wrote: post #31
dopa42365 wrote: post #4

Also found in rotten horse meat and insect cadavers and that's enough scrolling pubmed for me today. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34653803/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34738202/

I don't know if this is the same chemical that is released by decaying humans, but the few times I was exposed to decaying human bodies (forgotten elderly people in apartment complexes), I felt an overwhelming calming feeling. The smell is overwhelming, but I specifically remember the feeling it created.

This is a very interesting effect. If it is the same chemical, I wonder if it's because the scent sends signals to your brain that indicate that you might be in danger and keeping your cool may be somehow beneficial to your survival...

Re: Chemical emitted by babies could make men more docile, women more aggressive

#39

Post by gremlinsinc »

chapium wrote: post #37
rp1 wrote: post #3

I don’t know if this counts as a pheromone, but babies definitely emit _something_. As a recent father, I have had numerous people remark on how wonderful babies smell after smelling my child. I can’t smell anything. People who can smell this particular smell seem very perplexed that I can’t smell it.

Puppies also have puppy smell. After having a puppy, I’m convinced that smell is urine.

wow, you had a puppy? How'd that happen?

Re: Chemical emitted by babies could make men more docile, women more aggressive

#40

Post by keyle »

rp1 wrote: post #3

I don’t know if this counts as a pheromone, but babies definitely emit _something_. As a recent father, I have had numerous people remark on how wonderful babies smell after smelling my child. I can’t smell anything. People who can smell this particular smell seem very perplexed that I can’t smell it.

Wait till they start solids and you'll definitely smell something that won't make you more docile but run away!
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