'I Want to Eat You Up!' More Than a Saying, Study Shows

Turns out, when a woman says she wants to eat a baby up, a part of her means it.

A new study reveals that the smell of a newborn triggers the same neural response that accompanies food cravings.

"What we have shown for the first time is that the odour of newborns, which is part of these signals, activates the neurological reward circuit in mothers," said Johannes Frasnelli, a posdoctoral researcher and lecturer at the University of Montreal's Department of Psychology. "These circuits may especially be activated when you eat while being very hungry, but also in a craving addict receiving his drug."

The study included two groups of 15 women who were all presented with the smell of newborns. The first group included women who had given birth within the last 3-6 weeks, while the consisted of women who had never given birth.

The smell of the newborns were taken from the babies' pajamas two days after birth.

Brain imaging showed that while women in both groups perceived the smell of the newborns with the same intensity, there was greater activation in the dopaminergic system of the area of the brain known as the caudate nucleus in those who had recently given birth.

"[The caudate nucleus] plays a role in reward learning," Frasnelli explained. "And dopamine is the primary neurotransmitter in the neural reward circuit."

Frasnelli added: "This circuit makes us desire certain foods and causes addiction to tobacco and other drugs. Not all [odors] trigger this reaction. Only those associated with reward, such as food or satisfying a desire, cause this activation."

Sexual pleasure, for example, is associated with dopamine, as well as other forms of gratification.

The findings, the study authors argue, demonstrate how even the smell of a newborn plays a role in helping to elicit actions of maternal care from women, such as breastfeeding -- a role that is ultimately key for the newborn's survival.