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As Dave Barry says, I am not making this up.
From Chemical and Engineering News, the weekly publication of the American Chemical Society:
Pheromones from men affect women
Exposure to male armpit secretions reduces tension and enhances relaxation in women, as well as altering hormone pulses that may affect the length and timing of the menstrual cycle, a recent study shows [Biol. Reprod., published online Jan. 22, http://www.biolreprod.org/cgi/content/abstract/biolreprod.102.008268v1]. George Preti and Charles J. Wysocki of the Monell Chemical Senses Center, Philadelphia, and collaborators at the University of Pennsylvania have found that male armpit secretions contain two types of pheromones: a modulator, which modifies mood, and a primer, which alters endocrine responses. The change in women's mood was gleaned from responses to a mood-rating scale. The endocrine effect was measured through the pulsing of luteinizing hormone (LH). Bursts of LH secretion precede ovulation and increase in frequency as ovulation nears. On average, exposure to male armpit extracts reduced the time to the next burst by 20%. This finding suggests that the extracts affect the release of gonadotropin-releasing hormone from the hypothalamus and the timing of ovulation. Whether the emotional and endocrine effects are due to the same or different compounds is unknown. Chemical characterization of the active components in the extracts is under way.
From Chemical and Engineering News, the weekly publication of the American Chemical Society:
Exposure to male armpit secretions reduces tension and enhances relaxation in women, as well as altering hormone pulses that may affect the length and timing of the menstrual cycle, a recent study shows [Biol. Reprod., published online Jan. 22, http://www.biolreprod.org/cgi/content/abstract/biolreprod.102.008268v1]. George Preti and Charles J. Wysocki of the Monell Chemical Senses Center, Philadelphia, and collaborators at the University of Pennsylvania have found that male armpit secretions contain two types of pheromones: a modulator, which modifies mood, and a primer, which alters endocrine responses. The change in women's mood was gleaned from responses to a mood-rating scale. The endocrine effect was measured through the pulsing of luteinizing hormone (LH). Bursts of LH secretion precede ovulation and increase in frequency as ovulation nears. On average, exposure to male armpit extracts reduced the time to the next burst by 20%. This finding suggests that the extracts affect the release of gonadotropin-releasing hormone from the hypothalamus and the timing of ovulation. Whether the emotional and endocrine effects are due to the same or different compounds is unknown. Chemical characterization of the active components in the extracts is under way.
