Studies show that single men give off a smellier body odor (BO) than those in committed relationships, and it turns out the stench may signal their solo status to women.

In the experiment, published in the journal Frontiers in Psychology, 91 men (46 single and 45 partnered) were each given a plain white T-shirt and asked to perform enough moderate exercise that “a significant amount of sweat was absorbed onto the underarm of the T-shirt.”

Researchers then collected the soiled tops and asked 82 heteros*xual women to sniff them.

Each woman was given six T-shirts along with a photograph of the wearer.

“Consistent with our hypothesis, single men’s BO was rated as smelling stronger than the BO of partnered men,” wrote the study authors.

But why? There are a couple of dominant theories.

Previous research has shown single men to have a higher level of testosterone than their “off the market” counterparts. It’s believed that lower testosterone levels help bond relationships, which could explain why males without a significant other have more of the s*x hormone. Testosterone contributes to BO, which indicates that bachelors are smellier.

A more common-sense explanation for high BO aroma among single men is they may be less hygienic because they don’t have a romantic partner.

While the experiment suggests there are evolutionary advantages for the phenomenon – women who detect these chemo signals can avoid mating with partnered males – it doesn’t necessarily correlate to these men finding love. In the end, these reeky men will likely have to find a relationship the old-fashioned way – endless internet dating.