STRESS: When humans are "stressed", do humans give off "pheromones"?
Dennis
Dennis Mazur
The smell of fear, one of the most terrible cliches of pulp fiction, is founded in fact, scientists claim today.
People can unconsciously detect whether someone is stressed or scared by smelling a chemical pheromone released in their sweat, according to researchers who have investigated the underarm secretions of petrified skydivers.
The team found that the smell of fear triggered a heightened response in brain regions associated with fear when inhaled by volunteers in a brain scanner. The research suggests that like many animal species, humans can detect and subconsciously respond to pheromones released by other people.
The research was funded by the US Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency – the Pentagon's military research wing – raising speculation that it is a first step to isolating the fear pheromone for use in warfare, perhaps to induce terror in enemy troops. But DARPA denied that it had any military plans for fear pheromones or plans to fund further research into the field.
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