6/2/2023 0 Comments Different nose shapes"Research suggests that compared to modern humans, Neanderthals had more muscle mass and required more oxygen intake," Holton said. (See "Secrets of Smell: Different Nose Parts for Stinky, Sweet.") In the long view, gender isn't the only variable in who grows a big nose.ĭecades of research have shown that nose sizes and shapes tend to change with climate, the better to heat and humidify the air they breathe.Īnd similar schnoz size differences appear when comparing modern humans with our ancient relatives like the Neanderthals, the study asserts. While the test group was of entirely Caucasian heritage, it's expected that other lineages will show similar results because differences in male and female physiology appear to be universal, he added. "After puberty, for any given body size, males tend to have larger noses because more of the male body is made up of lean muscle tissue that's metabolically more expensive," explained Holton, whose study was published recently in the American Journal of Physical Anthropology. Previous physiological studies have shown that 95 percent of the weight males gain during puberty is lean muscle, but that such muscle accounts for only 85 percent of female growth. (Read "Battle of the Sexes: How Women and Men See Things Differently.") Gender differences in nose size begin to show up at around age 11, the team found, about the same time as puberty-which sparks the growth of more lean muscle in men and more fat mass in women. The nose functions as an extension of the lungs and helps circulate oxygen to nourish muscle.įor the research, Holton's team charted nose size and growth in 38 males and females who took part in a growth study from age 3 to their mid-20s. (See National Geographic's pictures of faces around the world.) While the human nose sits plainly on the face, it has less to do with the other features of the skull than it does with the respiratory system, Holton stressed. That's because bigger noses enable men to bring more oxygen into their bodies, which in turn helps to grow and maintain their energy-hungry muscles, according to the UI College of Dentistry's Nathan Holton, lead author of the research. (Read why men's ring fingers are longer too- the reasons may surprise you.) The research suggests that these larger schnozzes are simply nature's way of fueling the lean muscle mass that men have in higher proportion than women. In a new study, researchers at the University of Iowa report that male noses are about 10 percent larger than female noses, on average, for a given body size. Men, your noses are indeed growing-but not from telling tall tales.
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