Aromacology or psychology of aromas

Aromalogy or the psychology of aromas is a young science that studies the relationship between aromas and the changes they cause in our mood. Aromalogy focuses on the impact of different odors.taking into account the different emotional reactions they cause in our behavior.

It is necessary to differentiate between aromatherapy and aromacology. Aromatherapy is a therapeutic complement that focuses on the use of essential oils for the prevention and treatment of diseases and, therefore, obtaining results at a physiological level. However, aromacology focuses on the psychological benefits that some aromas can bring us.

While aromatherapy is based on the physical use of natural aromas through massage or ingestion, In aromacology, synthetic fragrances and perfumes are used, along with essential oils, and the reaction of our nervous system is studied. when exposed to different aromas, so it is not restricted by the natural limitations of the essences.

The science of aromacology was born in Japan at the beginning of the 20th century, when laboratory studies of the active ingredients of natural aromas produced by plants begin, analyzing them and eventually isolating them. Already in the 1970s, the name aromalogy was coined to separate it from its progenitor, aromatherapy. From that moment on, a scientific branch took shape that focuses on the study of how aromas affect our mood and, therefore, our behavior.

How does aromacology work?

One of the most studied senses in the last two decades, with interesting results, is smell. Thus, the sensations that different aromas cause and the reactions they produce in us have been revealed through different experiments. In this way, many of Research carried out by aromacology scholars focuses on the way the limbic system processes.

The limbic system is considered to be the place where emotions and certain instinctive behaviors are generated, such as eating behavior (hunger, thirst, satiety), emotions such as fear, anger or motivation, and instincts such as sexual instincts are activated. or survival, to be managed later by the hypothalamus.

The limbic system plays a fundamental role in our survival, its functioning is not subject to our will and its response can be very intense in relation to the stimuli that activate it. In aromacology the limbic system has a fundamental role.

Aromas travel through the air in small particles that enter our body through the nostrils. Our nose is designed to analyze part of this incoming air, so that millions of olfactory receptor cells, located in the turbinates of our inner nose, capture the chemical information of different aromas.

Olfactory receptor cells, thanks to more than 1000 smell receptor proteins that they store in their cilia, are capable of transform the chemical signal obtained from the aroma into an electrical impulse. This information is transported to the brain. There it will be treated, stored and delivered to the limbic system for processing.

Today we know that the stimulation of the limbic system caused by smell can change our mood (make us happy or sad…), our predisposition for alertness or rest, our appetite, attention, memory, etc. Determining this relationship between aromas and modifications on a psychological level through a scientific method is, ultimately, the purpose of aromacology.

Aromacology and olfactory memory

In the psychological stimulation caused by aromas, two well-differentiated evolutionary processes occur:

Primary process

The primary process derives from the direct reaction of our psyche to the experience of an aroma. It does not depend on anything other than the aroma or odor generated. Examples of this primary stimulus are aromas or foods that “awaken” our sexual desire.

Secondary or olfactory memory process

The secondary process derives from the reaction to an aroma based on olfactory memory.That is, the aroma is recognized in the archive of our memory, where it has previously been linked to a set of sensations that our olfactory memory is capable of rescuing and reactivating those sensations that are located in the aroma codes in our brain.

An example of this secondary process consists of entering a bread oven and its aroma brings out memories from our childhood (images, sounds, thermal sensations, feelings, emotions…) with a level of clarity that no other brain storage system is capable of producing.

You might be interested…