How Smell Affects the Brain
Our senses are how we gather information about the world around us. Sight, sound, touch, and smell send signals to our brains, helping us interpret and respond to our environment. Interestingly, smell affects your brain in a strong way. Scent is very much tied to emotion and memory. Unlike most of our other senses, smell has a uniquely direct pathway to the brain's emotional centers. Signals from the nose travel through the olfactory bulb and connect rapidly with the amygdala, which helps process emotions, and the hippocampus, which is involved in forming and retrieving memories. This direct connection helps explain why a familiar scent can instantly evoke a feeling or bring back a vivid memory. Understanding how smell affects the brain can help you choose soaps and essential oil skincare products you'll truly enjoy.
How Does Scent Connect to Memories?
Have you ever picked up on a scent and been transported to your grandma's kitchen, where she would bake her famous cookies? Or maybe you were at a restaurant and smelled someone’s perfume and suddenly your best friend from high school came to mind! Experiences like these are so common that scientists have given them a name: the Proust Effect. Research suggests that memories triggered by smell are often especially vivid, emotionally meaningful, and deeply personal. Compared with memories brought on by sights or sounds, scent-evoked memories can feel more nostalgic and are often associated with stronger positive emotions. Additionally, scents bring us and a greater sense of connection to the people and moments that shaped our lives. Every time you use Bogue Goat Milk Soap and bath products, you're creating new scent memories that may become part of the moments you'll remember for years to come.
How Scent Can Help You Feel More Grounded
Because smell has a uniquely direct pathway to the amygdala, a brain region involved in processing emotions and detecting potential threats, a strong scent can capture your attention almost instantly. This helps you to come back to the present moment and become more grounded. This rapid connection helps explain why certain scents can interrupt overwhelm or rapid thinking and return your awareness back to the present. Basically, scent is an excellent grounding tool. Licensed Therapist Sipora Weissman from Ventura, California recommends essential oil products like the Essential oil roll-on No.19 Namaste Blend as a coping and grounding tool for clients with PTSD or overwhelm. Sipora suggests, “when you’re feeling overwhelmed, triggered, or anxious, rubbing a pure essential oil on your wrists and then taking in the scent can support you in quickly feeling more grounded and settled.”
What Science Says About Scents and Calm
While everyone's response to scent is unique, researchers have studied certain pure essential oils for their potential effects on mood, relaxation, and stress. While scent isn't a replacement for medical or mental health treatment, some aromas have shown promising results in helping people feel calmer.
It's important to note that the calming scents discussed in many scientific studies come from pure essential oils extracted from plants. Synthetic fragrance oils have been associated with skin irritation in some individuals, and some fragrance ingredients have been studied for their potential hormone-disrupting effects. All of Bogue Milk Soap's goat milk bath and skincare products only use pure essential oils.
Lavender Essential Oil
Lavender is one of the most extensively researched essential oils for relaxation and calm. Its characteristic aroma comes largely from naturally occurring compounds called linalool and linalyl acetate. Researchers believe these compounds are thought to interact with brain pathways involved in stress and emotional regulation. While researchers are still working to understand the exact mechanisms, studies suggest that smelling lavender essential oil may help reduce feelings of anxiety and promote a greater sense of calm in many people. One of our best-selling lavender goat milk soaps is the No.9 Shangri-La. Try it for yourself!
Bergamot Essential Oil
A 2023 randomized crossover trial found that people who used bergamot essential oil before bedtime and upon waking experienced reduced psychological stress and improved sleep quality compared with a placebo. Other randomized clinical trials have also reported lower anxiety levels following bergamot aromatherapy, particularly in stressful situations such as before surgery. The popular Bogue Milk Soap Calm Down Giftset features the calming notes of bergamot essential oil.
Frankincense Essential Oil
Frankincense has been treasured for thousands of years for its rich, resinous aroma and is commonly used during meditation and mindfulness practices. While it hasn't been studied as extensively as lavender or bergamot, research suggests that inhaling frankincense essential oil may help promote relaxation. For example, some clinical studies have found reduced anxiety when frankincense aromatherapy was used before or during stressful medical procedures. Our organic goat milk soap Walking On Sunshine brings the relaxing effects of frankincense to your bathroom.
Bringing the Science of Scent into Your Daily Routine
Understanding the science of scent can change the way you think about everyday products. The soap you use each morning isn't just about cleansing, it's also an opportunity to engage one of your brain's most powerful senses.
By choosing handmade goat milk soap with pure essential oils, you're bringing the natural aromas of plants into a daily ritual. Whether your favorite scent reminds you of your favorite place or person, helps you feel more grounded, or simply makes your shower more enjoyable, those small moments can make an ordinary routine feel a little more special.
Citations
Wakui N, Togawa C, Ichikawa K, Matsuoka R, Watanabe M, Okami A, Shirozu S, Yamamura M, Machida Y. Relieving psychological stress and improving sleep quality by bergamot essential oil use before bedtime and upon awakening: A randomized crossover trial. Complement Ther Med. 2023 Oct;77:102976. doi: 10.1016/j.ctim.2023.102976. Epub 2023 Aug 23. PMID: 37625623.
Ghiasi A, Bagheri L, Haseli A. A Systematic Review on the Anxiolytic Effect of Aromatherapy during the First Stage of Labor. J Caring Sci. 2019 Mar 1;8(1):51-60. doi: 10.15171/jcs.2019.008. PMID: 30915314; PMCID: PMC6428160.
Yoo O, Park SA. Anxiety-Reducing Effects of Lavender Essential Oil Inhalation: A Systematic Review. Healthcare (Basel). 2023 Nov 17;11(22):2978. doi: 10.3390/healthcare11222978. PMID: 37998470; PMCID: PMC10671255.
Green JD, Reid CA, Kneuer MA, Hedgebeth MV. The proust effect: Scents, food, and nostalgia. Curr Opin Psychol. 2023 Apr;50:101562. doi: 10.1016/j.copsyc.2023.101562. Epub 2023 Feb 9. PMID: 36863096.
