RESEARCH Study: Chemical from nursing moms raises sexual desire

CHICAGO TRIBUNE
CHICAGO -- The aphrodisiac people have been seeking for centuries may be as close as the next nursing mother.
Researchers at the University of Chicago reported Wednesday that breast-feeding women and their infants emit a chemical signal that increases sexual desire in other women.
"This is the first report in humans of a natural social chemosignal that increases sexual motivation," said Martha McClintock, a University of Chicago psychology professor and a member of the research team.
It's still not clear whether the substance produced by nursing mothers is a pheromone. Further research will be needed to discover its exact nature, researchers said.
In their study, McClintock and her colleagues collected the substance from 26 breast-feeding women in Philadelphia. The women wore pads in their nursing bras, which absorbed their babies' saliva as well as their own perspiration and milk. They also wore special pads to collect underarm sweat. The pads were cut in pieces and frozen.
Meanwhile, researchers in Chicago recruited about 90 women between the ages of 18 and 35. Over a period of two months, half the women were exposed to the pads from the nursing mothers; the other half were exposed to dummy pads containing a solution of potassium phosphate.
The participants were asked to swipe the pads under their noses several times a day. The participants kept daily logs in which they recorded their mood, their desire for sexual intimacy and their sexual activity, including fantasies of a sexual or romantic nature. The study subjects who had regular partners reported a 24 percent increase in sexual desire. Those without partners experienced a 17 percent increase. No increases were reported by those who were exposed to the dummy pads.