Smells Fishy— Androstadienone!! UPDATE

Smelling androstadienone (a derivative of testosterone found in male sweat) has been found to raise cortisol levels in women, as well as mood (see link 4 below).  That’s what I read after learning that a high cortisol level in the body leads to: immune deficiencies, damage to organs that affect digestion and womens reproduction, etc.(see link 3 below), I dug deeper and found that: 

Androstadienone is also chemically reproduced, manufactured and targeted mainly to men (added to some products ie: cologne, body wash, hair gel, aftershave, etc.) because ads lead them to believe that it will make them more sexually attractive to women and/or gay men. Studies show that this isn’t the case, but it has been found to make women (excluding lesbian/bisexual women) and gay men more ... “congenial” toward the man wearing the product. (Link 1 &2).

I thought I smelled something fishy out there! 

Digging deeper I find many sites (some medical) that counter the false advertising, and try to educate the public, ie:

1. —UC Berkeley News: https://www.berkeley.edu/…/…/releases/2007/02/06_sweat.shtml 
2. —The Journal of Neuro Science:http://www.jneurosci.org/content/27/6/1261.long
3. —Harding Medical Institute: http://hardingmedicalinstitute.com/cortisol-for-women/
4. —Wikipedia: (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cortisol).

UPDATE:
Note the following excerpts from an article in Psychology Today re Cortisol: Why the "Stress Hormone” Is Public Enemy No. 1:

 In another study, published on January 18, 2013 in the journal Science, researchers from France revealed that mice who were subjected to aggression by specific mice bred to be "bullies" released cortisol, which triggered a response that led to social aversion to all other mice. The exact cascade of neurobiological changes was complex, but also involved dopamine. The researchers found that if they blocked the cortisol receptors, the bullied mice became more resilient and no longer avoided their fellow creatures.
To shed light on how and why some mice got better, Sawa and his team studied the link between cortisol and the release of dopamine. Sawa says the new study suggests that we need to think about better preventative care for teenagers who have mental illness in their families, including efforts to protect them from social stressors, such as neglect. 

Note the following information gathered from a study found on the NCBI (National Center for Biotechnology Information) website in an article,  Sexual orientation and diurnal cortisol patterns in a cohort of U.S. young adults:

• The study included 1670 young adults ages 18–32 years (69% female, 31% male)  a prospective cohort of U.S. youth. Participants provided five saliva samples over one day to estimate diurnal cortisol patterns. Sexual orientation groups identified as:

• 130 bisexual, gay, or lesbian; 

• 427 heterosexual or completely heterosexual with same-sex partners (hereafter referred to as “mostly heterosexual”); 

• 1113 completely heterosexual and had no same-sex partners  

• This study from a large cohort of U.S. young adults did not detect a relationship between sexual orientation and diurnal cortisol patterns. Despite consistent evidence indicating that, compared to heterosexuals, sexual minorities experience elevated exposure to multiple forms of stressors and adversity across the life course, we did not find differences in diurnal cortisol rhythms by sexual orientation. One possible explanation is that sexual minority participants in the study exhibited physiologic resilience. 

The section that I highlighted in yellow needs countering, especially when considering that the group  targeted are fairly young US individuals (18-32)... and so a significantly large portion who are unmarried as the List of Countries at First Marriage site indicates re US stats:

Country	Men	Women	Average	Age Gap	Year	Source
United States	29.2	27.1	28.2	2.1	2015

It suffices to say that most of the participants in the study are seeking a mate with the men highly likely to be interested in products that claim to attract women -- products containing androstadienone.  This being the case, we now consider the group whose cortisol levels are most affected by these products: heterosexual women.  At section 3.2: Diurnal cortisol by sexual orientation, there are two charts (see below) produced by the study whereby it was then presumed to be "physiologic resilience among lesbians/gay men".  On the contrary, the charts produced show in the first hour of wakening: a much larger spike in cortisol levels for the completely heterosexual and mostly heterosexual female groups AND the bisexual/Gay males.  Yes I know that in the next 5 hours cortisol levels reduce until they are near identical, but this could very well be as a result of products containing androstadienone wearing off.   Assuming most wake up at 6am (to get ready for work or classes-- and so apply the products), then the 15 hours brings us to 9 pm. So then what of the remaining 8 hours ... what caused cortisol to rise from about 3 to 15?!  What comes to mind: men  using cortisol products before bed... which stands to reason if they believe that their sexual partners are going to be to be enhanced sexually... or even if they know the truth: that even if their partner is not more sexually aroused, the product will make them more malleable and so more likely to respond to sexual advances.  Of course this would put a whole new twist on "Stepford Wives".  The stats showing an elevation of cortisol in gay/bisexual men leads me to believe that they could very well be  aware... or at least one in the partnership.  Now grant you, I'm not saying that this is the case, but it sure as hell is a smoking gun!! 

 (Table 2 for females and Table 3 for males).

Fig. 1

Estimated model-based mean cortisol values as a function of time since awakening, by sexual orientation among female and male participants ages 18–32 years in the Growing Up Today Study (GUTS) Saliva Substudy. Notes: estimates based on model presented in Table 3. Saliva sample times: sample 1 = 0 from waking; sample 2 = 45 min from waking; sample 3 = 4 from waking; sample 4 = 10 from waking; sample 5 = before bed. No significant differences in cortisol were seen across sexual orientation groups.