I’ve read of similar study results before. This is not new news, just more corroboration.
These studies indicate the birth control pill interferes with a woman’s pheromonal sense of scent, attracting her to the wrong guy, in terms of both long-term compatibility as well as the stock of children they’ll produce.
From The Times, August 13:

A study by British scientists suggests that taking the Pill can change a woman’s taste in men – to those who are genetically less compatible.

valentine.jpg

The research found that the Pill can alter the type of male scent that women find most attractive, which may in turn affect the kind of men they choose as partners. It suggests that the popular form of contraception… could have implications for fertility and relationship breakdowns….
The Pill is thought to disrupt an instinctive mechanism that brings together people with complementary genes and immune systems. Such a couple, by passing on a wide-ranging set of immune system genes, increase their chances of having a healthy child that is not vulnerable to infection….

Couples with different genes are also less likely to experience fertility problems or miscarriages….
[T]he researchers said… this might not only impact on fertility and miscarriage risk, but could even contribute to the end of relationships as women who stop or start taking the Pill no longer find their boyfriend or husband so attractive.

There is a logical explanation, according to LiveScience:

The pill puts a woman’s body into a hormonally pregnant state (the reason she doesn’t ovulate), and during that time there would be no reason to seek out a mate.
“When women are pregnant there’s no selection pressure, evolutionarily speaking, for having a preference for genetically dissimilar odors,” Roberts said. “And if there is any pressure at all it would be towards relatives, who would be more genetically similar, because the relatives would help those individuals rear the baby.”
So the pill puts a woman’s body into a post-mating state, even though she might be still in the game.
“The pill is in effect mirroring a natural shift but at an inappropriate time,” Roberts told LiveScience.

[HT: moderator Chris, readers Janet, Phil M. and budpacmac, Matthew Balan from Newsbusters.org, proofreader Laura Loo]

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...