What are Male Pheromones?

In the very simplest terms, male pheromones are molecules that convey information from men to women. The word 'pheromone' comes from two Greek words: pherein, which means 'to carry or transfer' and horm?n, which means 'to stimulate or excite.' The only function of men's pheromones is to communicate important information to women.

Pheromones are the basic element of the 'chemosensory' system. The perception of different chemicals in the environment is the oldest of all senses and is shared by every organism from single-celled bacteria all the way up to Ph.D.-educated humans. Across species, chemical messages are used to locate food, detect predators, and interact socially.

Chemical sensing occurs well below the level of human consciousness, even though humans might be consciously aware of pheromones' scent. A good analogy is the difference between verbal and non-verbal speech. We're consciously aware of the content of verbal communication, but we also respond to non-verbal signals when we're talking with someone face-to-face. In a similar way, a woman may be consciously aware of the aroma of a man's pheromones while she's responding to the chemical signals at a deeper level. Subconsciously, she'll feel sexual attraction begin to build.

Because human pheromones have a scent, we tend to think of the chemical signal as being transmitted via the sense of smell: an invitation wafting on the air. In reality, though, human pheromones trigger responses by direct skin-to-skin contact: a handshake, hug, or kiss on the cheek leaves a potent signal behind.

In all species, one of the most important functions of pheromones is to coordinate reproduction. Pheromones produced by both males and females signal readiness and receptivity to mating, and they help sort out suitable mates from unsuitable ones. Not surprisingly, given their importance to reproduction, any chemical message transmitted by pheromones is effective only within the same species. For instance, musk is a pheromone produced by a number of animal species and a common component of perfume and cologne. But musk has no chemical effect on humans.

The number of human pheromones that has been identified is far less than in other species. This is partly because their existence wasn't proven until the 1980s. While pheromones in other species were identified in the late 1950s, it was believed that humans lacked the specific brain structure that detects the chemical signals of pheromones. This is akin to assuming that someone who doesn't have a car parked in the driveway can't possibly have a can of gas somewhere in the garage.

The other reason that the identification of human pheromones is so challenging is because communication between humans is immensely complex, relative to other species. This makes it much harder to isolate and detect the effect of pheromones on sexual behavior.

Nevertheless, scientists have identified specific human male pheromones. These have been demonstrated to exert specific effects on the physiology and psychology of women, changing their hormonal secretions and altering moods in ways that increase the likelihood of sexual attraction. It's safe to assume that, over the coming years, as the human pheromone scientific evidence grows, a number of other effects will be revealed, as well.