All humans smell different, and even though that may sound gross, it may be the reason your best friend is your friend. Of course, some of these smells can be more pungent and distinguishable than others, especially when one doesn’t shower, however smells that come from our genetics and that waft from our skin molecules also play a fundamental role in our lives.
In the science community, it is well-known that commonalities — not only habits and jobs but also brain activity, looks, and genetics — between two strangers is a good indicator on whether or not they will ‘click’ as friends. Inbal Ravreby, an olfaction researcher at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel, was determined to find out if our noses selected our friends. She recruited 20 pairs of ‘click’ friends and stopped them from changing their body odor by making them avoid garlic and take baths with unscented soap. Days later, she compared the pairs of friend’s bare body odor with each other, finding that the odors were more similar than those of strangers.
Her study, published by the Journal Science Advances implies that a human’s smell selects who our friends are. Ravreby’s surprising findings generated newer questions that expanded the studies scope. Researchers began wondering if body odor could also predict friendships. In the newest publicized data, which included 132 strangers, similarities in body odor could predict if both people felt a positive connection 71% of the time. This finding emphasizes the role smell could play in all our relationships.
Now researchers are looking into modifying body odor and the role it may play in creating new relationships. These new studies are revealing the complex and intricate ways smell may be playing in our daily lives. The potential of this research is limitless as it helps with understanding human behavior and the fundamental role senses like smell unconsciously control our lives.
Link: https://s3.amazonaws.com/appforest_uf/f1656875608498x655947992108723200/Does%20Your%20Nose%20Help%20Pick%20Your%20Friends_%20-%20The%20New%20York%20Times.pdf
In the science community, it is well-known that commonalities — not only habits and jobs but also brain activity, looks, and genetics — between two strangers is a good indicator on whether or not they will ‘click’ as friends. Inbal Ravreby, an olfaction researcher at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel, was determined to find out if our noses selected our friends. She recruited 20 pairs of ‘click’ friends and stopped them from changing their body odor by making them avoid garlic and take baths with unscented soap. Days later, she compared the pairs of friend’s bare body odor with each other, finding that the odors were more similar than those of strangers.
Her study, published by the Journal Science Advances implies that a human’s smell selects who our friends are. Ravreby’s surprising findings generated newer questions that expanded the studies scope. Researchers began wondering if body odor could also predict friendships. In the newest publicized data, which included 132 strangers, similarities in body odor could predict if both people felt a positive connection 71% of the time. This finding emphasizes the role smell could play in all our relationships.
Now researchers are looking into modifying body odor and the role it may play in creating new relationships. These new studies are revealing the complex and intricate ways smell may be playing in our daily lives. The potential of this research is limitless as it helps with understanding human behavior and the fundamental role senses like smell unconsciously control our lives.
Link: https://s3.amazonaws.com/appforest_uf/f1656875608498x655947992108723200/Does%20Your%20Nose%20Help%20Pick%20Your%20Friends_%20-%20The%20New%20York%20Times.pdf