Hi, this is Dan from Dad Psych.

Feeling sidelined as a new dad? With all eyes on mom and baby, it’s easy to feel lost.

Every Wednesday, we’ll untangle the science and psychology behind your new world in 5 minutes or less.

Straightforward, research-backed and never costing you a penny.

This has to be the most bizarre fatherhood study I’ve ever seen

I’ve written about a lot of strange studies since starting this newsletter last year, but this one definitely ranks up there.

Fathers can identify their children by scent.

Hmmmmm… alright then.

In a 2024 study, researchers found that 33% of fathers could blindly pick out their child’s clothing from a pile of random items.

I know, it sounds like they spun a wheel of random study ideas, but stick with me, this one is actually fascinating.

Study specs

Researchers in Germany explored how fathers react to their children’s body odour and how this changes as kids grow.

They worked with 56 fathers and 73 (related) children, ranging from newborns to 18 years old. Fathers completed smell tests and rated how pleasant, sweet, and familiar different odours were.

The children of the fathers wore special shirts overnight to capture their body odour, as well as being asked to shower with non-fragrant shower gel or soap. The next morning, the clothing was presented to the fathers in a lab setting.

Before you start questioning the obvious, yes, the children’s clothing was only given to their actual father, mixed in with a bunch of random clothes from other people unrelated to the study.

Study findings

Fathers could recognize their child’s odour 33% of the time, which was much better than random guessing (17%). They also found the body odour of their prepubescent children to be more pleasant but this preference dropped sharply if they had daughters who were, at that time, going through puberty.

Researchers suggested this shift might be a biological way to reduce the chance of incest, as puberty changes body odour significantly. Ew.

This makes sense, as fathers' preferences for their sons’ odours remained consistent, regardless of age.

Yep, an uncomfortable food for thought, but here we are.

What does this show?

Well, as one Redditor put it…

According to the researchers, body odours play an important role in parent-child relationships, helping to build and maintain a loving bond.

They do this in two key ways: first, by allowing parents to recognise their own children, which encourages care and resource investment.

Second, pleasant or familiar body odours activate the brain's reward and pleasure systems, reducing stress and strengthening the parent-child bond.

It goes to show just how hardwired you are to step into the role of a dad, even if you doubt yourself sometimes. Even your nose is on your side.

Oh, and as a bonus, it helps to protect the gene pool. Good old science.

😳

Meme of the week

Kinda starts to hit after the 5/6 month, doesn't it 😄 

Never mind lads, we’ll have time again… some sunny day.

Dad photos of the week

Nothing to see here. Just a bunch of dads losing their shit in the delivery room. Move along.

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That’s about it for now, have a great week!

- Dan from Dad Psych

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