Women subconsciously prefer the aroma of dominant men when they are at the most fertile stage of the menstrual cycle, research suggests. Researchers in Prague asked 48 men to assess how dominant they felt. The men then wore cotton pads in their armpits for 24 hours, which were subsequently presented to 65 women. Those who were ovulating rated the “dominant” men as sexiest, but there was no similar pattern among women at other stages of their menstrual cycle. The findings, published in Biology Letters, suggest women are evolved to seek out the most virile sexual partner when conception is likely. But the rest of the time they probably prefer potential social partners.
