Maternal body odour signals to babies that they can safely build relationships with other adults, a trait that may have evolved so that mothers can share the load of child rearing.
Humans 10 December 2021.
By Alice Klein.
A mother and daughter.
Fizkes/Shutterstock
Babies are more receptive to new women when they can smell their mother's body odor, suggesting that maternal scent serves as a safety signal.
The smell signatures of mothers allow their babies to recognise them and have a soothing effect when they are in pain.
Yaara Endevelt-Shapira and her colleagues wondered if signals in maternal odour changed the way infants respond to strangers.
They asked 62 mothers to wear cotton T-shirts for two nights and not use scented products, so that their natural smell wouldn't rub off on the clothing.
Their babies were strapped into chairs and introduced to a woman who was about the same age as their mother, who lived in the same area.
The babies were more likely to smile, laugh and look at the stranger if they had their mother's T-shirt under their nose.
The babies' electrical brain waves were more likely to match the stranger's when they could smell their mother's shirt, according to theEEG devices fitted to both participants' heads. Babies and their mothers look at each other and are thought to be a sign of mutual connection.
According to the findings,maternal body odors can assist infants in transitioning to social groups, exploring new environments and communicating with unfamiliar partners.
The body odour chemical makes men calmer.
This could explain why a blanket or toy from home can help young children settle into nursery school, because it might smell like their mother. The researchers didn't look at whether the scent of fathers or other familiar caregivers can have a similar effect.
Human babies benefit from being with adults other than their parents because they are more helpless than other species and need a wider circle of care. She says that maternal odour may be the reason for these external relationships.
More research is needed to see if the maternal scent helps women bond with their babies, but the current study shows that it does.
Science Advances is a journal.
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