A pheromone is a chemical that triggers a natural behavioral response in another member of the same species. There are alarm pheromones, food trail pheromones, sex pheromones, and many others that affect behavior or physiology. Their use among insects has been particularly well documented, although many vertebrates and plants also communicate using pheromones.

When an ant is disturbed, it releases a pheromone that can be detected by other ants several inches away. They are attracted by low concentrations of the pheromone and begin to move toward the region of increasing concentration. As they get nearer to their disturbed ant releasing an alarm pheromone, their response changes to one of emergency and alarm. They run about to try to break up the disturbance that caused the alarm.

Unless additional amounts of the alarm pheromone are released, it soon wears off. This ensures that once the emergency is over, the ants return to going about their business.
Honey bees also have an alarm pheromone which is why if you get stung near a hive you can expect more bee stings really soon if you are not careful.

Leaving a Trail Pheromone

A trail pheromone is left by hands as they move about once they have found food. This trail attracts and tells other ants where to go to find the food. It is continually renewed as long as the food holds out. When the supply begins to dwindle, The trail Pheromone ceases to exist. The trail pheromone evaporates quickly so other ants stop coming to the site and are not confused by old trails when food is found elsewhere.

Sex Pheromones

Hundreds of pheromones are known with which one sex (usually the female) of an insect species attracts its mates. Many of these sex attractants - or their close chemical relatives - are available commercially. They have proved useful weapons against insect pests as they can be used to attract insects to a trap, and to confuse males so that they won’t reproduce. There are spiders that produce a moth sex pheromone to help catch their prey. A lot of animals such as dogs will mark their territory by peeing. It is said that the scent of pheromones is one of the territory markers.

Pheromones for humans.

There are Claims such as Gain MASSIVE Sexual Chemistry on Demand!

A new study, published in the Sept. 5 issue of the journal Nature, shows the first real evidence that the nervous system of mice is wired to detect pheromones. And when that wiring is tampered with, their mating behavior is disrupted.

Researchers say mice contain pheromone receptors in a specialized organ in the smelling system of the body.

In their study, researchers at The Rockefeller University and the University of Maryland found that when these pheromone receptors were turned off through genetic mutation, the mice developed normally but were different in terms of aggression and sexual activity. The study authors say these differences might yield clues about pheromones’ role in influencing sexual behavior and species development.

According to the authors, the existence of a functioning specialized pheromone organ in humans has been widely debated, and the role of pheromones in human behavior has yet to be clearly understood.

In humans, pheromones are activated at puberty. Both men and women produce varying amounts of “male” pheromones: androstenone and androstenol, only women secrete the “female” pheromone copulins. Produced by the apocrine glands in the armpit and around the genitals pheromones send signals that are picked up by the vemeronasal organ (VNO), just inside the nose. The VNO passes these messages on to the limbic part of the brain which governs the most basic human sensations, like joy, anger, love, hate and sexual arousal.

It’s not just sexual attraction that appears to be boosted by wearing pheromones. Users of pheromone products report that people generally pay more attention to them, listen more when they speak, and are friendlier in social situations. Pheromones seem to affect people’s general impressions and assessments.

Here’s a look at a few of the pheromone products available:

* Athena 10X for men and Athena 10:13 for women - by none other than Dr. Cutler herself. The formula is a closely guarded secret
* Realm, men’s and women’s formulas. Scented. Contains .05% androstenone by volume.
* Xcite wipes, foil wrapped moist towlettes impregnanted with pheromones, easy to carry and quick to spread on the body. Scented.
* Primal Instinct for men only, contains 5 mg of androstenone per 10 ml bottle. This baby will last you a long time! Scented.
* DateMate 2000 for men with androstenone and androstenol. DateMate FM for women with androstenone, androstenol and copulins.   Unscented 15 ml. spray.
* Androstenone Pheromone Concentrate, for men an androstenone only oil-based formula. Scented.

Human pheromone research still holds important potential for people in other areas of study, such as in easing depression or stress and fertility control.

Scent itself, though, can be a very important sexual stimulant. It’s believed to be one of the strongest senses in its ability to trigger memory recall, behavior, mood, and association.