I am looking for information about pheromone anosmia in humans, both congenital and acquired.
Specifically, I’d like to see any articles from credible sources about how those people’s mating behavior is affected.
For instance:
What is the implication of pheromone anosmia as far as romantic love? Do people who have this condition lose the ability to fall in love or become attracted? Is their sexual behavior altered in any way?
For those who aquired it, how did this happen?
Are there ways to temporarily or permanently render the olfactory system insensitive to pheromones?
Please post serious replies only. I’d like this thread to become a solid compilation of information about this subject.
I dont think there is a cut and dry answer to this question. Studies do indicate that the ability to love is somewhat affected by anosmia to some extent.
The study above showed 13 males with anosmia . It showed social development was delayed. Interest in sex and dating low and the 3 married ones showed lack of ability to feel love.
In my personal opinion I don’t think the case is the same with everyone with anosmia. A lot depends on when and how this occurred in there lives.
Countless studies show the correlation between our sense of smell and our emotions. However love is complex and I don’t believe its simply derived from that only through the olfactory system. Perhaps in lower evolved mammals its more associated but humans have other advanced senses as well. I feel these play a part in are ability to love.
I do feel that the ability to connect and bond is greatly affected by the lack of ability to smell. Connecting and bonding is a large part of what makes one feel love. However it can be achieved in other ways.
Do you mean deliberately ? Like some pill or “potion” that will make someone anosmic when it suits us ?
Some drugs can cause ansomia like Amphetamines and phenothiazines. Repeated infections of the nasal cavity, lots of upper respiratory and viral infections can produce damage sometimes temporary and over time permanent. Some toxins are know to make the olfactory system insensitive but they cause other problems as well. Of course then there is the cause of head and facial trauma.
I have some experience with this topic as I do not have my sense of smell and have been on a quest most my life to understand the implications. Were you still looking for answers?
For example,
Am I effected by pheromones (ie self effects)? Yes, most of them like anyone else.
Can I get attached by romantic love? Yes
Can pheromones amplify the feelings that I have in a given romantic moment? Yes
Can copulins effect me? Yes
Can I tell if I spray something on that I’m wearing pheromones? Yes
It would be interesting if I was to find a women that does not have her sense of smell to test…
Hey thanks for your answer. I am still interested in this topic, yes. It seems you are unable to smell ordinary odors, but are not immune to pheromones or romantic love. This only thickens the mystery.
I’ve never tried copulins so I have no idea what effect they have. I’ve only tried scented products, a couple containing -nol, and one unscented -none product. Supposedly the -none smells bad but I am one of those people who are unable to smell it.
Though it’s impossible to measure, I’d be very curious to know what things would be like for you if you were able to smell. Would you fall more deeply in love? Would you be attracted to a different kind of woman? In other words, is your olfactory system responding to pheromones 100%, or could you possibly have partial anosmia to pheromones?
I am on a quest to really separate fact from fiction and I would love nothing more than to find something that works. So far I have interacted with people while wearing mones and have never seen any effect.
Curious, where do your questions stem from? Do you also not have a sense of smell? Doing a research project?
From what I’ve been told when discussing this topic with partners is that having olfactory smell would have you imprint/associate the feeling of love with the usual smell of your partner. This would serve as a long term love reminder that, yes, I would be missing. For example when she smells neroli she will be flooded by emotions of me.
But in terms of intensifying love at the moment and my own loyalties I believe thats more personality dependent and driven by cognition as opposed to memory recognition.
I’ve experienced some very intense love, to the point I don’t know if I ever will have the same feelings again. Feelings of bliss and infatuation… Initially they were aplified by pheromones but in the end I was told not to use them and the intensity still remained when she wasn’t enraged with instability.
To dig deeper you then start getting into the definition of love vs lust and emotions ect…
It seems from your description that you are experiencing love the same way as everyone else, and by the same token all other related emotions.
My curiosity about the topic comes from a mad scientist approach: Instead of seeking to enhance one’s own pheromones, I wondered what would happen if someone was immune to the effect of others’ pheromones, or was able to achieve that effect.
How does life differ when others’ pheromones have no effect on you? Is there a difference whether you were born that way or acquired that condition in adulthood?
It would be fascinating to explore this facet of pheromones.
I’ve met some people that claim they lost their sense of smell from being hit to the head or inhaling too much chemicals. One was at work. I didn’t get to test the pheromone theory by directly asking, but they did talk more to me on days I wore a-nol so it seemed reactions remain the same.
Welcome to the home of mad scientists. Most of us here are, whether or not they realize it.
I believe the discrepancy between general olfactory perception and pheromone perception has to do with the areas in which they are processed.
Pheromones are not usually processed in the ordinary manner for scents - their specific receptors are located in the vomeronasal organ, and not in the more general olfactory epithelium. It is generally accepted that adult humans do not possess a functional vomeronasal organ, although fetal humans do form a VNO before it regresses late in pregnancy. Many of the genes responsible for VNO activity in other mammals are non-functional in humans. In humans, the VNO is scientifically recognized as basically a vestigial organ.
However, the main olfactory system is capable of detecting pheromones, but the efficiency is probably greatly diminished. That isn’t really of help in this instance, as we have a subject with a non-functional main olfactory system. What an interesting blind test this is!
But all of that is mere background to this discussion. Given that TwistedOsterich has stated that he has no sense of olfaction, yet is affected by pheromones, it begs the most obvious of questions. Namely, if the organ responsible for perceiving pheromones is vestigial, and the subject in question is not capable of main olfactory processes, how is it possible that pheromones affect such a subject?
Obviously, somewhere along the line, our science has not caught up to real world experience. Either TwistedOsterich has a greatly diminished yet still functional main olfactory system and doesn’t know it (a thesis I’m not inclined to support) or the VNO in humans is more functional than science would have us believe.
I have no studies to support my ramblings, I’m merely an interested party. I’ll be reading Tisha’s linked articles shortly. Because I’m that kind of guy and it’s my day off.
Thats what I question everyday , its too bad there aren’t more scientists interested in this study with anosmic individuals. It may add to the fun that my father has the same condition as me and I have inherited this. I think its safe to say my olfactory system isn’t present genetically.
There were some studies in the Studies & Abstracts section that show mammals to be affected with pheromones with or without a VNO. I could be wrong - gotta find the article.
I found it a few minutes after I posted my spiel about VNOs in humans. Basically, the essay refutes the idea that VNOs in humans are entirely vestigial, and gives nominal evidence for transmitted hormonal interactions through the VNO in humans. It also makes the argument from analog using lower mammals.
I agree with it’s premise, especially given the anecdotal evidence from TwistedOstrich here in this thread, but it’s not a peer reviewed article or anything. From what I understand it’s redbar0n’s original work, although it’s a thorough and well sourced position summary. It reads almost like a plea for government funding!
, its too bad there aren’t more scientists interested in this study with anosmic individuals. It may add to the fun that my father has the same condition as me and I have inherited this. I think its safe to say my olfactory system isn’t present genetically.