According to a scientific study, different smells trigger different reactions in people and affect their mood by varying degrees. How does that happen? Read on to find out.

The olfactory sense, commonly known as our sense of smell is a very strong sense that more often than not, goes undetected. Since we have been more dependent upon hearing and sight for most of the human past, the sense of smell has come to be associated with different phenomena in our lives. It has been scientifically proven that smell is strongly associated with our memories and smelling a particular substance may trigger certain memories. This varies from person to person. Let’s take a look at the effect of perfumes on mood, how they have the ability to elevate or downgrade the behaviour of people.

What changes can be seen from smelling a perfume?

Perfumes have been scientifically proven to be associated with memory formation. Almost 8 out of 10 times, smelling a particular fragrance triggers a set of memories in a person’s mind. E.g. if Asters were your mother’s favourite flowers, then smelling asters would cause you to remember your mother’s affection, and you may tend to be nurturing to people around you.

Once again, this is not a rule of thumb and may/may not affect you completely. Most of these effects are subconscious and affect people without them realizing most of the times.

Which fragrance affects what mood?

A very interesting question. While it is true that the effect varies from person to person, there have been some smells that have been embedded in our brains for generations and people’s reactions to some scents are predictable to some extent.

Lavender: These violet/purple-colored flowers have long been known to be associated with relaxation. Most of the people tend to relax and talk a little casually after they smell lavender.

Citrus Flavors: A citrus fruit has been known to fill up a person with energy. If your team is looking a little dull, you may just present them with some oranges or tangerines, and see them more enthusiastic about work. Similarly, wearing a perfume with a citrus twist can trigger people around to be more energetic than they would normally be in the situation.

Jasmine: Jasmine has been associated with happiness. People tend to be ‘happier’ in their mood levels when they smell jasmine around. Jasmine can help you lift a person’s mood.

Peppermint: Peppermint has been a very popular flavor for many decades. It has been associated with a strong power to induce concentration. Wearing a spicy perfume can affect people around you to be more attentive when you’re talking to them.

These are some common inferences that have been drawn by researchers over the years. While this obviously doesn’t stand as a mark in the stone, there’s still a very high chance that these fragrances will affect a person’s mood accordingly.

Before trying to use the inferences drawn by scientists and researchers, keep it in mind that if something works well for you, it may not work as well with someone else. If a person has a dark memory associated with a scent, it may cause them to shrink their receptiveness towards you. If you’re thinking of using a perfume to subconsciously attain favorable results, which you actually may, it is advisable that you think it through. The trick should work in most cases though.