What Smells So Good? You!

When I was a junior in high school, I experienced my first "sneaky hooka" naughtiness: I went into the elevator with a boy and made out during our lunch break. It was good innocent teenage- hormone-fueled-fun. He was a really good kisser (and so I was I for that matter). Ever since that day, I have loved the smell of Drakkar. I loved it so much that when it became Eau de Douchebag and dudes I would want to sleep with wouldn't be caught dead in it, I bought some so I could smell it when the mood struck. Even now when its grandson, Axe, is clogging sinuses all over the land, the rare whiff of Drakkar I get in passing brings a sly smile to my face because that happy high school elevator scene is seared into my nose's memory forever. For the longest time I thought the primary reason I liked Drakkar so much was because of that wonderful, original "scent memory", but according to a recent study, that may not the reason.

Past researchers have discovered that a group of genes called MHC (major histocompatibility complex) is related to whether or not a person is sexually attracted to another based on his/her scent. They found that people are most drawn to people with different MHC genes than themselves.

August Hammerli, a researcher at the Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich and also the first author in a study published online in the International Journal of Cosmetic Science, believes that MHC genes determine our preferences for other smells. While Hammerli theorizes that people prefer scents that may best best enhance their own natural odors to potential partners, his latest study seems to indicate that your genes determine what perfume scents you like best. It also suggests that it may be tied in to the scents you find attractive in others.

Hammerli's study included 116 males and females who were asked to smell 10 different things including cinnamon, moss, rose, and cedar, which were varied with different concentrations and in different settings.

The ratings varied with clear winners and losers, but for each scent the intensity of each participant's preference depended on their particular set of MHC genes.

I always thought that I went into that elevator to be naughty and then realized that I liked how that kid smelled (and kissed). But maybe I smelled him on a more innocuous, primal level and I liked it so much I then decided to go into the elevator with him to learn more about it. Or perhaps I am just a sneaky hooka who likes to make out with men in elevators.