Pong for passion

Sir Howard Morrison has turned his nose up at suggestions that Rotorua's sulphurous smell could boost men's sexual performance.

Scientists at Italy's University of Naples have discovered a link between hydrogen sulphide - the gas that gives the town its rotten egg whiff - and male sexual arousal.

The research, published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, has sparked claims the gas could lead to new drugs to combat erectile dysfunction.

But Sir Howard, one of Rotorua's most high-profile residents, said he had only ever found the gas was "good for the guts" as a digestive aid.

"I don't see any evidence of it [being a sexual aid] and certainly wouldn't be racing to try it."

Rotorua Mayor Kevin Winters laughed when asked about the findings. "I thought it was a hoax at first. It sounds bizarre to me. I thought someone was trying to take the mickey out of Rotorua."

But the revelation could be a tourist drawcard. "This could be used to promote Rotorua in the same way oysters have done it for Invercargill," Deputy Mayor Trevor Maxwell told Rotorua's Daily Post.

"We should turn this into a positive and promote it as just another reason for honeymooning couples to visit our wonderful city."

Destination Rotorua Tourism Marketing general manager Don Gunn said the research could be a great marketing tool.

"How you'd build a campaign around it, I'm not sure but if it was done in a tasteful way I think anything that gives us a quirky marketing edge would be fun," he said.

Rotorua is also being studied by researchers from Harvard University in the US. Winters said they were a third of the way through neurological and circulatory tests on 1800 people to assess the long-term effects of hydrogen sulphide.

The study comes after American employers were taken to court for exposing factory workers to the gas.

"Somehow I don't think measuring the sexual prowess of our men is on their agenda," said Winters.