Different smells have a different effect on us. Some seem attractive and tasty, while some seem repulsive, and the same flavor can cause different associations in different people. With the help of smells, you can cause a certain mood in people and even treat some disorders, for example, relieve stress.
Lavender is a natural antidepressant. The smell of these flowers helps to cope with depression when other remedies are powerless. Once in the USA a newspaper was released, where the advertisement smelled of fried chicken. But the newsstands refused to sell it, as stray dogs immediately began to accumulate near them. Moonlight, according to astronauts, smells of gunpowder. Moreover, this is claimed by all people who worked with lunar regolith. It turns out that not only people have their favorite aromas, but also animals. For example, cats like the smells of valerian and mint, and camels like tobacco smoke. We perceive the smells of the brain, and the nose simply conveys them. That is why, having felt some kind of aroma, we can recall something related to it. Japanese researchers have proven that the smell of pine needles relieves stress and gives peace of mind. People living in megacities do not notice 70% of smells. But those who live in the wild can even catch the scent of a friend walking along the road. According to statistics, the favorite smells of most people are the aromas of freshly cut grass, fresh bread and coffee.
The smell of mint, as you know, relieves nasal congestion. In addition, it invigorates and helps the brain as a whole work more productively. People have known about the influence of aromas on human behavior a long time ago. According to one legend, the goddess Hera seduced Zeus using the fragrant belt that Aphrodite lent to her. In fact, the smell of coins is not the smell of metal, it is formed from a connection with organic substances, for example, with human sweat. Olfactory cells in humans are renewed in approximately 28 days. But with age, our ability to distinguish odors dulls anyway. A person is able to be saturated with odors. To “reboot”, just inhale the aroma of coffee beans. That is why in perfume shops you can often see jars of coffee. Professional perfumers pass very difficult tests before getting a job. They need to recognize every note of perfume, the composition of which may consist of 200-250 ingredients. Some gases start to smell different under pressure. For example, methane, which is toxic to humans, at a pressure of 13 atmospheres acquires a specific smell of chloroform.
Fragrances very strongly “bind” the memories of any events. It is enough to recreate the smell that accompanied pleasant moments – and memory will helpfully return to us the sensations that we experienced at that moment. Vanillin is listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the most odorous substance in the world. In men, the sense of smell is usually sharper than in women, so men sometimes perceive aromas unconsciously – their brain does not have time to “process” the information received, and some associations in the subconscious are already floating up. Purely theoretically, the human nose can recognize many millions of odors. But in fact, our sense of smell is much weaker. The same perfume used by different people can give completely different results, since its smell is always mixed with the natural smell of the body.
