Women’s body odor undergoes changes during fertile ovulation periods, producing measurable effects on male behavior including increased attraction and relaxation, according to Tokyo University research published in iScience. While the findings don’t confirm human pheromones exist, they indicate odor may subtly influence social interactions.
“We identified three bodily odor compounds that rise during women’s ovulation window,” stated neuroscientist Kazushige Touhara. “When men smelled mixtures containing these compounds alongside a standard armpit odor, they reported the samples as less unpleasant. Accompanying images of women were also rated more attractive and feminine. The compounds additionally relaxed men and suppressed stress-related amylase enzyme increases in their saliva.”
These results suggest body odor contributes to communication between sexes. However, Touhara clarified: “We cannot definitively claim these ovulation-elevated compounds are human pheromones. Classical pheromones are species-specific chemicals triggering set responses—this study doesn’t establish armpit odors’ species specificity. We focused on behavioral and physiological impacts: stress reduction and altered facial perception. Thus, we can currently describe them as pheromone-like compounds.”
[Graphic: Schematic of Tokyo University experiment (Source: ©2025 Touhara et al. CC-BY-ND)]