How scents can affect our mood
What’s your favourite smell? Maybe it’s freshly-cut grass, the saltiness of the sea at the beach, maybe it’s even your favourite Zoflora!
More so than other senses, smelling our favourite scent can trigger positive moods and release endorphins into our system. It’s no coincidence that estate agents suggest brewing coffee and baking bread in order to entice potential buyers when selling your house.
But what impact do different smells have on our mood and can different scents improve our day-to-day life?
Citrus: The citrusy scent of oranges, lemons and bergamot can help you to feel more energised and boost your alertness. As well as this, they are extremely good for cleaning and sanitising as they contain the natural solvent d-limonene so are a popular choice of scent for cleaning products.
Peppermint: Peppermint is a natural stimulant which can increase your ability to concentrate during times of mental fatigue or stress. It also gives a cooling sensation from its high proportion of menthol, which explains why it is often used in shampoos and shower gels, and contains antibacterial properties.
Lavender: For anyone who struggles to sleep, lavender is known to be a calming smell which can relax our body and mind, making it ideal for those with insomnia. Many people choose to put lavender in with their laundry or in their airing cupboard to give a soothing scent to clothes and linen too.
Vanilla: Not just in ice cream, vanilla is frequently used in perfumes and is associated with warmth and softness. The smell of vanilla is also known to be a natural aphrodisiac that induces euphoria and relaxation.
So whether it's the scent you use in your cleaning products or lighting a scented candle before bed, why not see if a different smell makes a difference around your home.
Written by staff writer: Laura Dew // www.linkedin.com/in/laura-dew-0b71b85a
Love this. My favourite scent of all time is Zoflora’s Country Garden. Just lifts me up. Calms me down and if I close my eyes I’m there. A country estate, surrounded by flowers. Very relaxing.
I love the special smell associated with babies, warmth, baby powder, fresh linen etc and all the smells associated with the sea, sea breezes, salt, sea weed etc, they lift me up and make me happy :)
I love so many smells! From cut grass, a new book, a new pair of doc martens (that new leather smell 😍). Then there are smells that take me back years…bacardi to when I was a younger more foolish version of myself 🤢🤢 to the aftershave my late stepdad Kev wore. He died aged just 51 after suffering with progressive aggressive MS. Miss him every day as we (Mum, myself and my kids) live in the house he built for my Mum. He is missed every day and when I smell his aftershave it takes me back to us laughing together and us holding hands as he passed. Dont know why I wrote all that…he meant the world to us and smell is how we remember him. Xx
This will sound almost silly, because when you read it, you’ll immediately think I’m off my rocker. But my favorite smell is snow ❄️, it’s also my favorite sound. But when it snows, the air is so clean and crisp smelling. It almost has a sweet smell . If I could capture that smell without the cold, I would. Since you guys have taken care of the H2O for me 😉!
Great read! However I don’t think I’ll ever be able to sway away from lavender! Ever since I got pregnant with my first I’ve been obsessed with the smell