We choose cosmetics that match our genetically-determined odour preferences. [Agnieszka] Sorokowska and her colleagues have shown that it is possible to make assessments of someone's personality based on their choice of fragrances. It suggests that guests of Louis XIV might have been able to pick up a thing or two about the king by sniffing the air upon arrival.
— Sorokowska is a psychologist at the University of Wroclaw, Poland. Read more in Why single people smell different at BBC.
HA! I’d love for Dr Sorokowska to diagnose NST readers…with 100+ bottles of scent!
Right? What she say about us???
Seriously.
The studies that are referenced and linked are quite peculiar. They only deal with a group of five so-called major personality traits. Some of them contradict other studies I have seen (e.g., about whether the B.O. of men who eat meat-based vs. plant-based diets is preferable). Also, the selection of sniffers is very limited, it’s women students within a certain age range. Lots of reasons for skepticism.
Yes, as always.
The Five Factor Personality model is a “popular” method of categorizing people for psych/personality/ self help type research. But this leaves out lots of other research in this area, as well as folklore of various sorts … If you want your BO to not smell much, skip the onions, scallions, garlic and other alliums, and put lots of cinnamon in your food (Ayurveda)… If you want to have no BO stop eating any thing that is apt to have yeast (Alcohol, vinegar, bread, grapes, anything fermented like pickles, yogurt, processed meats like sausages, etc.) and do drink Pau d’Arco tea (the theory that everything the matter with us can be blamed on systemic yeast infections) …If you want to smell different than you smell, wash your pits and pubes with yogurt a few times a week to change the bacteria there (hippie dippie ’70’s family planning clinic I went to back in the day…how things have changed, huh?) Oh, geez, my head is filled with random more or less useless information, isn’t it? Happy Friday everyone!