You smell terrified: We can detect when others are scared by their scent, new study shows

The smell of fear really does exist - and it may be catching, researchers say. A study has shown that we can subconsciously detect when others are scared simply from the chemicals released from their skin.

Scientists who made the discovery believe the signals can spread a ripple of fear through a group. The findings add to the growing evidence that our sense of smell is far more sophisticated that many of us realise - and that humans can detect and react to pheromones released by others.

Dr Bettina Pause and colleagues at the University of Dusseldorf in Germany put absorbent cotton pads under the armpits of 49 student volunteers one hour before they were due to start a university oral exam. She also collected sweat from the same group of students as they worked out on exercise bikes.

Another group of 28 volunteer students were then asked to sniff the cotton pads while their brains were monitored with an MRI scanner. None were able to tell the difference between 'panic sweat' and 'exercise sweat' but the brain scans told a different story, reports the science journal PLoS One.

When sniffing 'panic sweat', the regions of the brain that handle emotional and social signals became far more active. Parts of the brain involved in empathy also lit up. The researchers believe fear and anxiety trigger the release of a chemical that makes other people empathise. (Daily Mail)