According to a study, the scent of a man can make a woman drink more alcohol than usual.
Research in this regard has been conducted by the Department of Psychology at the University of South Florida. The study explains how the scent of a man can affect a woman's decision about drinking alcohol.
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The group of researchers recruited 103 women from the ages of 21 to 31 for the purpose of the study. The group of participants were told they were taking part in a survey for men's cologne and drinks. They were then divided into two groups.
One group of participants was given fragrance strips that had been sprayed with manufactured androstenone — a pheromone found in boar's saliva — while the group was given fragrance strips sprayed with just plain water.
Over the course of 10 minutes, those who smelt the androstenone drank a 10th more than the women in the control group who were given the water "cologne."
The researchers said: "We inferred that detection of male sexual scents, even in the absence of awareness, may instigate drinking because of the longstanding cultural association between alcohol use and sex."
The drinking habits of the women might vary because sometimes male scents instigate drinking alcohol as it is correlated to an increased desire for sex.
"Because of the centrality of sexual signalling to fundamental evolutionary/biological forces, these results indicate a potentially powerful influence on alcohol consumption that calls for continued investigation," the study concluded.
A previous study had demonstrated that odours emitted by women during their ovulation prompted men to drink an increased amount of alcohol.
