Women who have just finished ovulating are better at detecting snakes than at
other times of their menstrual cycle, according to an unusual study that sheds
light on in-built reflexes for survival.
Nobuo Masataka of Japan's Kyoto University tested 60 healthy women of
child-bearing age at three different phases
of their cycle.
They were simultaneously shown nine pictures, one of which was a snake among
flowers while the others were only of flowers.
The volunteers were tested on how quickly they spotted the serpent. The
fastest women were those who were in the so-called luteal phase of their menstrual
cycle, or the stage that immediately follows
ovulation.
Mother's instinct to protect foetus
The study strengthens theories that we have a "fear reflex," or an innate
response to threat signals such as potentially poisonous snakes, Masataka
believes.
Previous research has found this trait among infants aged as young as eight
months and even among non-human primates.
Among women, the reflex seems to be influenced by hormone levels at a stage
when they could be pregnant and thus be more protective towards their foetus,
the study suggests.
"It could contribute to women's ability to increase their vigilance towards
biologically relevant threatening stimuli around themselves during this period
of possible pregnancy," it says.
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