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Ever heard of love at first sniff? For those people who believe in Smell Dating, a quirky mail dating service, instead of paying attention to the physical attributes of a person, they prefer focusing on their scent.
Smell Dating users believe that instead of falling in love because of a person’s physical traits, couples fall in love because of what they smell.
What in the world is Smell Dating?
We don’t blame you. Smell dating does sound dubious. It seemed like a phase that came straight out of an insane science fiction novel, but, it is as real as it can get.
Smell Dating is a mailing dating site that’s similar to Tinder, but instead of swiping photos, you will sniff t-shirts.
After you sign up, they will mail you a t-shirt that you need to wear for three dates. Take note that you must not use deodorant during the three-day period. Then, you need to send back the shirt to Smell Dating.
In return, they will send you t-shirts worn by other Smell Dating members. You will need to sniff the swatches and respond to the survey to determine which sample you like best.
While it may sound totally absurd to like a person because of their scent, science and psychology have a number of solid evidence to back things up.
The power of scent
The Smell Dating site describes the smell or olfaction as the most evocative and poignant human sense. Even a faint smell of roses, fruits, bread or any other item can trigger a psychological and emotional response.
Experts say that the positive or negative response that results from getting a whiff of a certain scent traces its origin to a person’s childhood. They call it the Proust effect.
For example, the smell of pine, mint and chocolate reminds you of Christmas while the scent of apples and pumpkin spice lattes make you think of cold autumn days and nights.
Whenever you smell something that takes you back to a special or traumatic moment in your life, your brain triggers a sensory stimulus that equates to an emotional or behavioural response.
This is why sniffing T-shirts from random strangers sent by Smell Dating doesn’t seem like a bad idea.
Aside from Proustian memories, pheromones is also another key factor that explains the logic behind Smell Dating.
Pheromones are unique compounds produced by the body to attract a mate. This invisible substance plays a pivotal role in physical attraction and sexual desires of a man and a woman.
This bodily substance is frequently released from the body via the skin pores and combines with sweat.
While there may be a thin chance of meeting your one true love via the dating service, at least you get a chance to exercise your sense of smell and have a fun and unique experience
Beyond the dating service
Even if you don’t end up with the guy or girl of your dreams via the Smell Dating service, it doesn’t change the fact the olfaction is indeed a powerful game changer in romance.
This is why manufacturers of perfume for women and men from all around the globe earn billions of dollars in revenue each year.
Some of the most saleable brands include Marc Jacobs, Chanel, Viktor & Wolf, Tom Ford, Jo Malone, Lancome, Yves Saint Laurent, Gucci, Creed, Dior, and Versace. They’re so popular you can buy them from innumerable shops no matter where you are in the world.
Aside from bottled perfumes and colognes, body sprays and deodorants are also quite in-demand, regardless if they’re made for a man or a woman.
Wonder why there’s a great need to smell nice especially for people with relationships?
Scents and relationships
The sense of smell is believed to be directly linked to the most archaic part of the human brain, the limbic system.
This section of the brain deals with memories and emotions. As a result, it’s easier to remember a scent or a fragrance that you smelled during your childhood than a picture or an item that you once had. It also explains why your mood suddenly changes after smelling chocolates or your partner’s body lotion.
Because of the nose’ influence on your emotions, it can be deduced that it plays a significant role in relationships and even sex drive.
Fragrances that drive men crazy
Scent experts claim that fragrances with undertones of vanilla, chocolate, amber, sweet musk, honey and cream can significantly increase sexual desires. The edible and addictive qualities of such food items are believed to have a crazy effect on men. This is why it’s quite common to find women’s perfume with a creamy and sweet scent.
You can try any of the following sweet and intoxicating fragrances for women if you need more firepower on the weekends:
- Vanille Exquise by Annick Goutal
- Orchidee Vanille by Van Cleef & Arpels
- Tobacco Vanille by Tom Ford
- Vanilla & Anise by Jo Malone
- Vanilla Marble by Agonist
- Un Bois Vanille by Serge Luttens
Type of scent that can make women’s knees go weak
While the male populace wants their counterparts to wear a creamy and intoxicatingly sweet fragrance, women love smelling wood and spicy scents on their partners. They go wild for woody, clean and masculine scents.
If you’re a man looking to please your partner or to attract a lovely gal, consider using fresh and sensuous fragrances such as:
- Calvin Klein Obsession
- Pabo Rabanne 1 Million
- Hugo Boss Boss Soul
- Faberge Brut
- Aramis Tuscany
- Eurotalia Joseph Abboud
- Giorgio Armani Armani Code
- Yves Saint Laurent Opium
- Carolina Herrera 212
Natural Body Scent
Besides perfume, some couples are attracted to each other because of their natural body scent and the smell of their sweat. According to scent experts, a majority of women love the smell of their male counterpart’s sweat.
The key to this attraction is the secret ingredient called androstenol. This hormone mixes with sweat whenever a man works out or engages in strenuous activities. Because of this hormone, a lot of women are naturally drawn to gym rats.
The same can be said for the males. They are also quite attracted to female sweat, most especially during their fertile period.
Biggest deal breakers
While the stench of sweat naturally attracts both male and female, this doesn’t mean that you can be too complacent when it comes to your body odour. Practise good hygiene so your sweat body parts don’t harbour bad bacteria that produces that foul smell. Make it a habit of changing your clothes and cleaning them right away to prevent bacterial growth that may cause foul armpit odour.
Also, be sure to take our oral hygiene seriously. Don’t forget to brush and floss your teeth every after every meal to avoid developing bad breath. Surely, you don’t want to scare away potential partners because your breath stinks so bad. Last but not least, don’t neglect your feet. You don’t want to ruin your moments with your lovey-dovey just because she or he realises that you have a bad case of athlete’s foot or toenail fungal infection.
