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

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51–60 of 143 posts

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

#51
post #37
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.

Human baby urine soaked Kirkland diapers smell like Corn Flakes cereal to me.

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

#52
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.

Well, there is also a possible psychological component. Lots of women end up seeing single men as a possible threat. With a baby in your arms, you can signaling that you are much safer to them in a multitude of ways, many of them in a way that both parties are not necessarily aware in a conscious level, but we do have sub conscious processes that alter our thoughts and behaviors.

But the smell is also a factor, that's the thing, humans are the single hardest animals to study, cause we are way, way too complex.

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

#53
post #5
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.

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

Ohmigod yes. But funnily enough only the first kid. The second, who was also breast fed and just as adorable had no particular smell, while for the first it was overpowering.

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

#54
post #33

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

Also: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ingressive_sound

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

#55

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!

> I wish more of our language had breathing-in based sounds, it could double our information transfer rate!

It might mean fewer pauses for the purpose of inhaling. But pauses for that purpose are already close to being 0% of speaking time.

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

#56
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.

I thought my babies smelled nice, but always assumed it was the baby shampoo or diapers, both of which had a scent. I suppose it's possible the nice smell came from the babies themselves, but it'd be hard to disentangle — especially since much of the supposed scent comes from the head, which also smells of baby shampoo.

Completely anecdotal, but I use scent-free soap, diapers, and detergent, and was never able to identify anything special about my baby’s smell. We didn’t bathe him at the hospital either so in theory his smell was as close to ‘natural’ as you can get.

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

#57
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.

I thought my babies smelled nice, but always assumed it was the baby shampoo or diapers, both of which had a scent. I suppose it's possible the nice smell came from the babies themselves, but it'd be hard to disentangle — especially since much of the supposed scent comes from the head, which also smells of baby shampoo.

I don’t think it’s baby shampoo because my partner and I both smell the shampoo, but she smells something else as well. She’s smelled the same smell since the day the baby was born, before we bathed her or put a diaper on.

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

#58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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...

If decay has already set in the threat has likely either passed or isn’t something worth having a fight or flight reflex over (like toxic food or vapors).

It’s likely just a natural process that’s useful in specific contexts (caretaking for babies) and doesn’t really affect fitness in other contexts enough to get selected out.

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

#59
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

>And I smell it on other babies, too. It’s like smelling breast milk, but emanating from the Fontainelle I wonder if its brains you smell, and a fully fused skull prevents the smell from escaping.

I think bone is actually more porous than the skin barrier between your insides and the outside. Whatever it is, it’s likely to be coming from oil or sweat glands.

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

#60
post #5
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.

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

Probably TMI, but I have a very good sense of smell. I once figured out my coworker was pregnant because she basically smelled the same as a baby's fontanelle (I kept this to myself, I'm not insane).
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