Olfactory Function Relates to Sexual Experience in Adults

Research output: Contribution to journalResearch articleContributedpeer-review

Contributors

Abstract

The olfactory system contributes significantly to human social behavior and especially to mate choice and empathic functioning. In this context, previous research examining individuals with impaired olfactory function indicated an influence of the sense of smell on different aspects of sexuality. However, the applied samples, methods, and results are diverse and an involvement of confounding factors, such as breathing problems, depression or social insecurity cannot be ruled out. The present study examined the potential correlation between odor threshold in healthy participants and their sexual desire, sexual experience, and sexual performance. In 70 adults (28 male, 42 female; mean age 24.8 ± 4.1 years), odor threshold was assessed using the "Sniffin' Sticks." The participants also responded to a battery of questions on sexual desire (Sexual Desire Inventory), sexual experience (orgasm frequency, perceived pleasantness of sexual activities on a visual analogue scale) as well as sexual performance (frequency of having sex, average duration of sexual intercourse). Odor sensitivity correlated positively with sexual experience: Participants with high olfactory sensitivity reported higher pleasantness of sexual activities. Further, women with high olfactory sensitivity reported a higher frequency of orgasms during sexual intercourse. These findings were exclusively present for sexual experience; no significant correlations were detected for sexual desire or sexual performance. The experience of sexual interactions appears to be enriched by olfactory input. We discuss that the perception of certain body odors may contribute to the concept of sexual pleasure by enhanced recruitment of reward areas.

Details

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1333-1339
Number of pages7
JournalArchives of sexual behavior
Volume47
Issue number5
Publication statusPublished - Jul 2018
Peer-reviewedYes

External IDs

Scopus 85047200061
ORCID /0000-0001-9713-0183/work/146645363

Keywords

Sustainable Development Goals

Keywords

  • Adult, Female, Humans, Male, Sexual Behavior/physiology, Smell/physiology, Young Adult