Pheromones: Man’s First Cologne

Before getting into discussion about just how and why pheromones are considered to be the first natural cologne for men, it’s important to know exactly what pheromones are.  Derived from the two Greek words “φέρω phero” meaning “to bear,” and “ὁρμή” meaning “impetus,” pheromones are bodily chemical reactions that alert awareness in other members of the opposite sex within the same species.  Almost every breathing organism, from plant to human alike, use pheromones for the purpose of communicating in one way or another.  


The History Of Pheromones
First introduced to the world by Peter Karlson and Martin Lusher in 1959, they created the word pheromone by joining the Greek word pherein {which means “to transport} with the word hormone {which means “to stimulate”}.  When there’s a sudden change in behavior or hormones, pheromones are the end result, as they are then being transported out of the body.  There are many different types of pheromones.  These include but are not limited to the following:  alarm, releaser, primer, trail, and sex pheromones.


Pheromones & Sex
The most relevant of pheromones to human men would be sex pheromones.  For a while, it was thought that only women could exhibit pheromones, typical before and after a menstrual cycle.  This is untrue.  Men display pheromones as well, through their armpit, or axilla.  They do this by sweating.  During sex, men excrete a chemical compound called androstadienone, which is included in with their sweat.  It has been shown that the smell from these pheromones cause almost an instant behavioral change in women.  Sometime during 2004, it was documented by researchers and scientists alike that after doing plenty of studies on men and women, it was concluded that pheromones  play a key role in sexual orientation of men and women.  Later in 2008, this was further proven by a team of scientists in Sweden who used special magnetic brain imaging.  These images showed that once sexual sweat was produced, the following parts of the brain were strongly affected: the right fusiform cortex, right orbitofrontal cortex, and right hypothalamus gland.


The Future of Pheromones
Despite the instant attraction that results when men and women are exposed to each other and pheromones are secreted, there have been plenty of people who have tried to market this idea  and try to improve on it.  In fact, a lot of companies and advertisers try to market body sprays, perfumes, colognes and oils with the promise that their products all include real sex pheromones that counteract as aphrodisiacs.  While businesses  may try to make a believer out of most by using fancy packaging and celebrity endorsements, many scientists and researchers have gone on record by saying that no substances that have ever been created and bottled for sale have truly embodied real pheromones, or have caused the same effects that real pheromones have on the behavior of humans.  For this reason and this reason alone, one thing has proven to be true.  No matter how you cut and dice it, pheromones have been and will forever be man’s only natural cologne.