The Magical Sense of Smell
Do you know how much scent can affect your daily life?
Since I began using essential oils, I am much more aware of how important this sense can be and how it can affect me.
According to the latest research, the aroma of breakfast is a man’s favorite smell while for women it is a newborn baby. And another survey claims you can tell where a girl is from by her choice of perfume.
Why is our sense of smell such a vital part of our lives – and how has it influenced science, art, culture and history? Here are some things you might not know about this wonderful sense..
● Our scent cells, like many other tissues in the body, are renewed every 30-60 days, so every 4-8 weeks you get a fresh “nose”.
● Smell is the most sensitive of the senses. People can remember smells with 65% accuracy after a year, while visual recall is about 50% after three months. Many research studies have shown that smell is most linked to our emotional recollection and that 75% of emotions are triggered by smell which is linked to pleasure, well-being, emotion and memory.
● You can smell fear and disgust. You can detect feelings of fear and disgust, and probably more through sweat, and then you can experience the same emotions, according to a 2012 study published in the journal Psychological Science. Click here to read more..
Researchers collected sweat from men as they watched movies that caused these feelings. To remain odor-neutral for the sweat test, the men used scent-free products, and quit smoking and using alcohol.
Women participants then completed visual search tests, while unknowingly smelling the sweaty samples. The women’s eye movements and facial expressions were recorded during this time. The researchers found that women who smelled the “fear sweat” opened their eyes widely in a fearful expression, and women who smelled the “disgust sweat” also displayed facial expressions of disgust.
● The sense of smell gets bored easily. When entering a bakery, florist, or even the cleaner aisle at the grocery store, you are very aware of the aroma but by the time you reach the check-out you will no longer be able to smell the different aromas around you. This makes it important to switch up the oils in your home regularly, to keep stimulating your sense in different ways.
● The sense of smell is the first to develop. Even before we are born, our sense of smell is fully formed and functioning.
● Women generally have a stronger sense of smell than a men. It is heightened even more in the first half of the menstrual cycle and reaches its peak when she is most fertile.
● The sense of smell peaks when we are in our late teens and begins to decline gradually. People who have an impaired ability to smell, which means taste, seem to follow diets that are not as healthy.
Essential oils have an incredible impact on our sense of smell. I have found that using essential oils at least 3 times daily keeps me in a better mood, in less pain and more able to stay balanced emotionally.
