The Empowering Health And Emotional Effects Of Scents

"But when from a long distant past nothing subsists… more fragile, but with more vitality, more unsubstantial, more persistent, more faithful, the smell and taste of things remain poised a long time, like souls, ready to remind us, waiting and hoping for their moment, amid the ruins of all the rest." - Marcel Proust, In Search Of Lost Time.

Without scent, there is no SCENTIANA. It's one of the key tenets of who we are and what we do.

We are a holistic brand that recognises all the systems in our body as interconnected and solicits most of our senses to provide an authentic mind-body experience. We’ll be delving deep into the sense of scent through a series of posts. Today's focus is on the impact of olfaction on our mental and physical health.

The Proust Effect

The direct and intimate connection between scents and emotions never ceases to amaze; specific smells immediately trigger an emotional reaction, evoke or revive a memory, and redirect our mood. This is due to our limbic system, our “emotional brain”, where odours travel through to reach the amygdala and the hippocampus, the regions of our brain related to emotion and memory.

Scientists associate this inter-relationship of olfactory perception and emotions with the name of Marcel Proust. In his masterpiece In Search of Lost Time, the French writer vividly captures this process. The plot sees the main protagonist dip a madeleine cookie in a tea as it begins to exude its characteristic smell of fleur d'oranger and lemon zest and takes him back to the most intricate memories of his childhood. Modern science is convinced that the so-called Proust Effect can and should be used to our advantage.

In humans, about 300 active olfactory receptor genes are devoted to detecting thousands of different fragrance molecules through a large family of olfactory receptors. And since smells easily reach the very depths of our subconscious, the sense of smell indeed plays an important role in the physiological effects of mood, stress, and working capacity.¹

The science behind scents and cognitive performance

Aromatherapy has been a healing modality in ancient civilisations. Today, in neuroscience, studies are conducted to assess the impact of scent on cognitive and neural functions, and results are equally fascinating and inspiring. It can be concluded that fragrances both directly and indirectly affect human psychological and physiological conditions. Fragrance inhalation significantly modulates the activities of different brain waves and contributes to various states of the brain.²

Olfactory stimulation is shown to be protective for the brain, it’s a low-effort pathway for improved brain health.³ The results highlight that it improves memory but also lowers risks for cognitive decline by preventing olfactory loss, which is a sign of cognitive impairment.

Daily exposure to odorants also induce “neurogenesis in both the olfactory bulb and hippocampus”, at night, enhancing both normal sleep and abnormal sleep, thus providing effects similar to certain sleep medications. A study even reported that Lavender significantly reduces pre-exam anxiety in students, thus positively impacting their exam results. The conclusion was that pleasant odours (i.e, olfactory stimulation) provide cognitive enhancement and relaxation.⁴

Sandalwood is another scent with remarkable benefits. It's been reported to have sedative and anxiolytic properties ensuring protective functions against cerebral damage by inhibiting oxidative stress and inflammatory pathways. Its chemical components exhibit anxiolytic-like action, lowering locomotor activity following stress exposure. It can also transfer to the brain, adding to its calming effects.⁵

The scent of Rose (one of our core ingredients) was found to enhance absolute beta activity, which is associated with alertness, conscious behaviour, and elevated concentration.⁶ Damask Rose essential oil has key components with known antidepressant effects – as it increases parasympathetic activity and decreases sympathetic “fight-or-flight” activity – improves hippocampal neuronal damage and modulates neurotransmitter levels.⁷

The effects of scents on the sense of self

A specific fragrance can ignite in you a deeper connection to yourself and empower you by stimulating the senses. Simultaneously, a fragranced layer on your body will also alter the social impression you make on others.⁸ Since scents connect to memories, by wearing a signature scent, you can imprint a memory of you on your entourage. Your loved ones will be likely to associate that specific scent with you.

Each type of scent (resinous, floral, fruity, musky, and aromatic) unveils a variety of benefits and can exert an influence on our mood and perception. They contribute to improving emotional well-being. For instance: zesty fragrances are uplifting and vivifying; florals are softening, romantic, inviting you to lean into a feminine energy; woody/musky scents are grounding and warming.

• Jasmine oil elevates the feeling of well-being, releases an energy of sensuality and romance, and decreases negative emotions.⁹ It has a calming, refreshing and optimistic aroma.
• Sandalwood is amazing for meditation, for clarity, for grounding and relaxation. Rose and Sandalwood is for instance a harmonious scent pairing (which you can experience for yourself in our Replenishing Body Cream).
• Ylang Ylang is another amazing scent because it’s been used to help combat depressive symptoms, insomnia and regulate blood pressure.
• Neroli, similar to Ylang Ylang, is a potent stress reliever and a natural sedative.
• Bergamot increases positive mood and reduces signs of inflammation.
• Vanilla is a mood boost, it triggers happy emotions, induces relaxation, reduces startle reflexes, and can even provide some relief from sleep apnea.

Smelling and feeling good

Enveloping yourself in mood-enhancing scents can literally impact your overall well-being and help you take on the day with renewed energy and clarity. Fragrance enhances our confidence, willpower, and becomes the little nudge we need to assert ourselves more and stand in our power. We often hear the mantra “if you look good, you’ll feel good”, but based on the effects of olfactory stimulation, we are leaning towards “if you smell good, you’ll feel good and subsequently, look good.”

The impact of fragrances should not be underestimated; on the contrary, our remarkable sense of scent is a true wellness tool, and by guiding it with the right scents, we can elevate our mental and physical health to a whole new level, in an accessible way.

As you cultivate this deep connection between scent and sensation, remember that the most powerful well-being rituals engage both mind and body. Our Sensual Body Oil, meticulously blended with uplifting Rose Damascena and Jasmine Stem Cells, is designed not only to firm and renew the skin but to nurture your emotional well-being—a true body-mind self-care nectar to ignite your senses and leave you feeling confidently settled.

¹ https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5198031/

² https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5198031/

³ https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/neuroscience/articles/10.3389/fnins.2023.1200448/full

⁴ https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S036013232500085X

⁵ https://www.mdpi.com/2218-273X/14/8/971

⁶ https://www.hst-j.org/articles/xml/LOng/#idm982345480x

⁷ https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0378874124003064

⁸ https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0258773

⁹ https://www.thaiscience.info/journals/Article/JHRE/10892943.pdf