The Intoxicating Smell of a Newborn Baby Isn't All in Your Head

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
by Mary Fischer 14 hours ago

Sigh. Is there anything sweeter and more satisfying than the smell of a newborn's tiny head? Even though I'm well past the "OMG I want another baby" phase, I have to admit that I still get a little bit drunk after taking a whiff of a brand new babe. (I'm only human.)

And I guess I always figured loving the scent of a baby was a mom thing, but as it turns out, there's actually a scientific reason why babies smell good -- and it really isn't all that surprising.

According to a new study conducted at the University of Montreal, the smell of a newborn "taps into the pleasure centers of a woman's brain" and basically gives us an innate desire to care for our helpless little infant.

And since newborns don't give much "feedback" to parents or respond to them positively by smiling and cooing until they are a bit older, their scent basically gives us some sort of "reward" from them for all of the hard work we're putting in to successfully take care of them.

It's almost like smelling them makes us high or something.

(Whoa. That's pretty deep as far as science is concerned.)

OMG. Doesn't that concept make so much sense? Of course we're going to be more inclined to snuggle our babies, care for them, and bond with them if our brains are going crazy with pleasure at the mere scent of them!

All biological stuff aside, it's actually really sweet knowing that finding the smell of a baby to be the most delicious thing on the planet isn't all in our imagination. At least that's one thing that makes us seem a bit less crazy.

And now I need to go hunt down a friend with a newborn so I can take a whiff and get my fix (and immediately hand the baby back to his or her mother and breathe a sigh of relief that I'll actually be getting some sleep tonight).

Are you obsessed with your baby's smell?

Image via Mary Fischer

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Mary Fischer

is the writer behind The Mommyologist, and the mom of a future famous comedian. Her current loves include Pinot Grigio on ice and Harry Styles -- in that order.

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