A nasal spray which increases our trust for strangers is showing promise as a treatment for social phobia, say scientists from Zurich University.
They found that people who inhaled the "love hormone" oxytocin continued to trust strangers with their money - even after they were betrayed.
Nicknamed the "cuddle chemical", oxytocin is a naturally produced hormone, which has been shown to play a role in social relations, maternal bonding, and also in sex.
"We found that oxytocin has a very specific effect in social situations. It seems to diminish our fears.
"Based on our results, we can now conclude that a lack of oxytocin is at least one of the causes for the fear experienced by social phobics.
The hormone could also be a candidate for treating patients with autism, he says.
"Autistic people also have a fear of social situations and have problems interacting, so it is very likely that oxytocin could help," he said.
Drug trials are under way and early signs are promising say the scientists.
