Dr. Mercola September 29 2007 91,871 views
Within a broader movement known as "full-sensory branding," the practice of scent marketing -- using specially formulated fragrances to make you buy unrelated products and services -- is on the rise. Smell, it is said, has an unrivaled power to evoke emotion, and this power can be harnessed to boost sales.
Hundreds of companies already set your mood with piped-in aromas, in everything from real estate show rooms to shoe stores. Advertising Age named the practice one of the top 10 trends to watch in 2007. ScentAir, a producer of aroma-marketing systems, stated their business quadrupled between 2005 and 2006.
But why use scent?
Because companies have realized that to stay competitive, and be successful in an advertisement-crammed world where consumers are bombarded with sights and sounds, other avenues must be tapped. "Fragrance is the only thing left," says Harald Vogt, founder of the Scent Marketing Institute. "You cannot turn off your nose. You have to breathe."
So, with between $50 million to $80 million being spent on scent marketing in 2006 alone, does it really work?
According to researchers, yes. According to Martin Lindstrom, author of "Brand Sense," the bible of full-sensory marketing, "People will make quicker decisions, be willing to pay more, and most likely be so emotionally engaged that they are removed from the rational part of their behavior."
There are hurdles however, as one man’s scent is another man’s nuisance. Scent preferences are not only gender biased, there are also cultural and generational preferences -- there is no such thing as a universally admired scent. Additionally, people often form negative associations to smells more easily than positive ones.
Another problem is the possibility of scent overload, similar to noise pollution. And smells might downright torture people with chemical sensitivities, for example. This is not a deterrent for many businesses though, who want to appeal not just to your mind, but also to your emotions, psyche, heart and soul, in an effort to make you buy, buy, buy.
New York Times September 9, 2007
Using scent when trying to sell something seems to work quite well. I’m sure these companies wouldn’t spend millions on something that didn’t impact their bottom line. Most of you, I’m sure, have had the experience of being transported back to another time and place, or being put at ease by a certain scent, like your mother’s perfume, or grandma’s apple pie.
Unfortunately, this practice may cause a stink for quite a few people, especially those of you suffering from chemical sensitivities. Like Mr. Vogt said, you cannot turn off your nose.
You do have to breathe.
Scent and Irresponsibility
Although many who suffer from chemical sensitivities are viewed as hypochondriacs by the medical establishment, it is a very real, and very serious affliction that can have an enormous, negative impact on your life. I know, as I used to be married to a physician who was debilitated with this illness, so I have had some first-hand experience.
It seems everything is scented today, from toiletries to cleaning products to upholstery. It’s a very difficult thing to avoid, and when they start piping it into the air ducts of every other store, it can make life unbearable for some.
Several types of chemically scented products have been found to be detrimental to your health.
Scented candles, for example, may release lead, mercury, and other toxins into the air that you breathe. Particularly hazardous are the slow-burning types of candles that offer hours of inviting coziness. These types of candles often have shiny metal wicks made of pure lead, or a mixture containing lead. The lead particles are small and may float through the air for extended periods of time, then settle on furniture and carpet where they can be touched and ingested by children, adults, and pets.
In large amounts, candle emissions can harm your nervous system, heart, and circulatory system; particularly in children, the elderly, and people with weakened immune systems. Before purchasing candles, look to see if the core is made of metal. Also, look for candles made without additives, such as those made of bees wax.
Air fresheners and toilet deodorizers are other sweet smelling culprits that can damage your health. They often contain a chemical called 1,4-dichlorobenzene, or 1,4-DCB, which has been linked to lung damage. This chemical is present in the blood of nearly all Americans. If you have high amounts of this chemical in your blood you’re more likely to experience diminished lung function, which could be serious if you have asthma or other lung problems.
Reduced lung function is also a risk factor for heart disease, stroke, and lung cancer.
Common Sense Scents
If you use air fresheners, candles, or dryer sheets because you like the scent, therapeutic essential oils are an excellent, and safe, alternative for all of them.
Most essential oils have antibacterial qualities and have varying physical and emotional effects depending on the oil, such as stimulation, relaxation, pain relief, and healing. The most common ways to use essential oils include:
If you want a non-toxic alternative to dryer sheets, simply dab a drop or two of an essential oil onto a washcloth and put it in with your laundry in the dryer.
It’s important to note that essential oils are not the same thing as fragrance oils.
Essential oils come from plants, while fragrance oils are artificially created and often contain synthetic chemicals. While they may smell good and are typically less expensive, they will not give you the therapeutic benefits of organic essential oils--and you don't want to be inhaling any synthetic chemicals! So, please be sure that the essential oil you use is of the highest quality and 100 percent pure.
Also note that essential oils should be used with caution, especially during pregnancy, as they can produce very strong and significant changes in tiny amounts. It’s a good idea to consult someone knowledgeable in aromatherapy before experimenting with these oils.
Can a Good Smell Improve Your Health?
Scents can be a wonderful addition to your healthy lifestyle, offering soothing relief for various problems, both emotional and physical. In fact, researchers have found that the smells of certain foods -- such as green apples -- may help ease migraine pain, for example.
Headache experts agree that certain odors seem to either provoke or warn of migraine onset. Many migraine sufferers believe smells such as cigarette smoke, cooking odors, or perfumes can trigger an attack, while others recognize various scents as part of the 'aura' that signals migraine onset.
In one study, researchers asked 50 chronic headache patients to rate the severity of their pain before and after smelling an inhaler impregnated with the scent of green apples. Then, 35 of the 50 patients reported that they disliked the green apple odor, while the remaining 15 said they found it pleasant.
The authors reported that patients who liked the smell experienced a statistically significant reduction in the severity of their headaches, while patients who disliked the smell experienced no significant effects, either for better or worse.
They speculate that the green-apple scent may have induced a positive mood state in the 15 patients, and such a state would tend to reduce perceptions of pain.
Your Emotional Connection to Chemicals
Which brings me to the connection of your emotional state with chemical sensitivities.
Extreme emotional burdens can have a profoundly negative impact on your body in a physical sense. In essence, your emotional wound can tear through your body’s bioelectrical functions and become a very physical wound -- weakening of your immune system is one common and very serious result, which may allow chemical sensitivities to set in.
On a small scale, you experience this relationship between your emotions and physical health all the time: a stressful week at work, for instance, often makes you more prone to catch a cold. On a large scale, it is only more extreme: an emotional trauma can debilitate your body’s very ability to ward off toxins (or, for others, viruses and bacteria), thus leading to disease, such as chemical sensitivity.
With my chemically sensitive patients, therefore, my first line of treatment is always to assess whether such emotional traumas may exist. Quite often, they do.
My next line of treatment, therefore, is to:
Some of you may question my recommendation to deal with your chemical sensitivity by dealing with your emotional issues, thinking that simply avoiding all toxins is the answer. And yes, of course it makes sense for those with chemical sensitivity to avoid toxins; ideally, of course, everyone should try to avoid toxins. For more tips, please read through "How to Avoid the Top 10 Most Common Toxins."
But the true solution resides in establishing emotional well-being and implementing an appropriate diet, so that your body is re-optimized to heal and ward off toxins like everyone else, allowing you to live a normal life again. And the first step toward this solution is believing that such improvement really is possible.
I also have Multiple Chemical Sensitivity, the illness that doesn’t exist according to those whose forbears used to deny that cross-contamination causes fatal infections when surgeons didn’t wash their hands between patients.
I’ve spent 10 years trying to figure out the patterns of my triggers, which change over time depending on what prophylactic measures I try and who knows what else. Not enough is known about the illness but a couple of things I now suspect:
I believe one of my fragrance problems is with phthalates for two reasons. First, no matter how much I may dislike an unwelcome fragrance, I won’t get a migraine unless it is the type that lingers for long periods, such as those awful, cloying, fruity perfumes. Chemical smells from traditional cleaners don’t get me, but when they try to make them smell “lovely” with a lingering aroma, they do. Second: a prime culprit for me was our minivan. We all know new vehicles emit VOCs, but why didn’t my Jeep do it to me? One big difference is that the minivan has a plush interior with soft vinyl, while the Jeep interior is hard plastic. Phthalates are used to soften plastics in cars and to make scents linger for long periods in aromatic compounds. This is just putting two and two together and for all I know it may make five, but since we’ll get no honest cooperation from the industries that make these products, guessing is all I can do.
Some of you may be interested in reading molecular biologist Martin Pall ’s work on MCS and related illnesses.
I told my doctor I am extremely sensitive to smells and he said that's a symptom of adrenal fatigue which is what I am currently "battling".
Smells give me an instant headache that take quite some time to go away. If I get behind a van or truck that is putting out too much emissions I have to pull off to the side of the road to let them go ahead of me.
Bath and Body Works is currently selling some type of scented oil that they burn at the mall near me. It makes me go mad. I have to hold my breath when I walk pass that store...
I agree Reesacat - this canary also has a HUGE migrane after reading this article.
I was fine till I got poisoned by pesticides. Now I react with painful symptoms to the 'chemicals' contained in the 'smells'. No emotional problems here. Just very ill from chemical toxicity.
Yup - this article gives me a HUGE migrane.
I can't believe people are so oblivious to how fake and chemical-smelling most perfumes are! My male roommates wear "Axe" or some other body spray and it's sick! I can smell it all through the house. Also they put Plug-Ins in the living room and I was almost sickened by the smell. They thought it smelled good. (These are people who eat fast food for every meal and spend all free time watching TV).
dandelion1, thank you for bringing up the "Plug-Ins." I am a certified aromatherapist and my cleaning company helps realtors with home stagings on occasion. They insist on using those horrid products, thinking as you say, that it smells good. What they don't realize is, the olfactory nerves have an on/off cycle and your brain will tune out the scents around you after a period of time, cycling back on periodically. These people think because it doesn't smell strong enough, they need more "Plug-Ins." Ugh. They aren't ready to listen to me yet, but I'd love to create wonderful theraputic oil blends for them that don't smell like chemicals and don't harm their prospective clients. Sometimes I walk into these staged homes and just gag.
May I make a suggestion to all you chemical sensitive people.... may I suggest you start detoxing your liver and spleen........ if you locate a QXCI, EPFX/SCIO practioner they will be able to help you get started.
good luck
As one who has chemical sensitivities, I can relate to the person who has trouble walking down the grocery aisle that contains washing powders and liquids and tearing up (as in tears running down your cheeks) from the heavy chemical smells and perfumes. This is a very real problem for very many people. Does anyone really believe these chemicals have no effect on their health? These are chemicals that cause cancer and are wafting through the grocery aisles! Have you heard of gas warfare? This is no different...it is a war for your attention to get you to buy the product and the resulting attack on your sensitivities means nothing to the manufacturers of these products. These smells are actually "chemical molecules " realeased into the air that are "ingested" by your olfactory system. In a single product, the Environmental Protection Agency may state that the "ingestion of x parts per billion (PPB) is safe". What about the chemical aisle where the resulting smell is a hundred-fold of the PPB?
As bizarre as it may seem, i think a lot of people believe if it doesn't drop you dead on the spot, it doesn't effect you. My mother turned 70 this year. She discounts anything i say about natural healing, & eating healthy. She told me that as a child she had serious exposure to DDT & she's now 70!
I can't tell her, "Yes, but you also have SLE (lupus) & are in pain most of the time. You are putting a huge chemical load on your body with all the medication you take. You may be 70, but you're not healthy." Because i have celiac disease & can't tolerate wheat/gluten, & it tends to run in the family, i suggested to her that her pain level would decrease if she'd quit eating bread & other wheat-based food items. (My own pain level dropped greatly when i quit eating those grains.) She was horrified by the suggestion. She said "it's too hard" to eat that way. She'd rather keep on popping the pills & eating what she wants.
Part of the problem for the general population, is they don't know what real health is. If you're "only" on two or three medications, you're "healthy." The fact that people shouldn't need chemical concoctions doesn't seem to register. Pills have become so much of our society that it is seen as norm, not unhealthy. Because people live to be 70, 80, 90, & those chemicals & unhealthy food don't kill them immediately, they discount the effect these items have on them. If we're living to great age now with all the chemicals, think of how healthy & vibrant we could live if we could rid the world of this unhealthy stuff.
My mother has the attitude that people like me and I would think people on this board are all hippies. Her attitude is "what is it all for anyway?" and " we are all going to die so what is the point of it all??"
She takes no less than 27 DIFFERENT pills every day. She eats processed everything, Jello, soda, everything ever made with partially hydrogenated oils and high fructose corn syrup and she is over 300 lbs, in a wheelchair and is in miserable health. She has seen me bounce back from skin cancer, cataracts, and IBS, but because I have MCS, fibromyalgia and some joint pain she discounts all I have done with my health over the last 20 years. Some people are just scared of changing their lives I guess. I will continue to do the "radical" stuff I do, namely eat good food (sorry, but I am a 22 yr long vegetarian), moderate exercise, and working on my spiritual body as well as my physical body
and I no longer need to care what others think of my path, including my mother.
My mother-in-law used scented laundry detergent for years. I would get an instant headache and almost choke on the perfumy smell when I walked into her house after she had done laundry. It didn't affect her the same way because she was used to the scent. A few years later, she switched to unscented brands because the scented ones made one of my sons break out in an itchy rash. The next time my mother-in-law bought one of the scented brands (not sure why), she got to experience the choking sensation firsthand. If you're not surrounded by a lot of scents, even a small amount of one is potent. I'm afraid that I won't be able to go shopping any more if they start filling the air in stores with too many.