What's in a Scent?

There is a new and more convincing reason why men should wear scents.

A study found out that men who wore commercial fragrance compared to those who didn't, were considered more attractive by women. After seeing short silent videos, the women considered those who wore fragance more attractive because these men exuded more self confidence in their actions. The same women were not able to distinguish men when they were just shown still photos, suggesting it was the men’s movement and bearing, rather than their physical appearance, that was making the difference.

Another finding is that we choose a perfume or scent to further promote or enhance our natural smell. In 2001, another study found that there is a correlation between the perfume a woman preferred and her own natural scent.

The correlation is with the genes of what is known as the major histocompatibility complex (MHC)...It turns out that one of the most important aspects of mate choice in mammals, humans included, is to make sure that your mate’s MHC is different from your own.

This implies that you choose a mate whose scent is more different than similar to yours. So when choosing a perfume, the one you select might not really be the choice of your (potential) mate. You're better off choosing for someone related to you.

Complete article here from The Economist