Men smell of cheese, and women of onion

Men smell of cheese, and women of onion

  10:32:00 AM    Science Lover

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Women smell of onion while men are more likely to whiff of cheese, says a group of scientists after "sniffing" both sexes' armpits.
The bizarre research, which investigated the distinctive armpit odours of men and women, was conducted by scientist at Firmenich,a company in Geneva that researches flavours and smell for the food and perfume industry.
Analyses found that samples for women contained high amount of an odourless sulphur-containing compound,according to New Scientist magazine.
When this was mixed with bacteria usually found under the arm, it was transformed into a chemical called thiol, which is well known for its onion-like smell.
In men , the boffins found high levels of an odourless fatty acid that released a cheesy smell when exposed to enzymes produced by bacteria in the armpits.
"Men smell of cheese, and women of grapefruit or onion," said study leader Christian Starkenmann of Firmenich.
A team of independent testers recruited by the scientists also found the smell from women's armpits was more unpleasant.
Dr Starkenmann hopes to use the findings to develop deodorants aimd at particular sexes.
However, some scientists claim that external factors might mean that this study does not apply universally.
Professor Tim Jacob, who researches the science of smell at Cardiff University in the UK, said : "Factors include what you eat, what you wash with, what you wear and what genes you inherit."