Of scent and sensibilities: Experts tell you how the sense of smell can influence an individual's mood

Every day, we move about 438 cubic feet of air and breathe 23,040 times. Each breath cycle – inhaling and exhaling – lasts approximately five seconds. Imagine the number and variety of smells we encounter daily!" says Goa-based independent perfumer and researcher Monika Ghurde, who recently concluded a perfume workshop for children at the India Design Forum in Mumbai. "I don't even sell the idea of perfume. I just make people aware about how to smell consciously."

Ghurde refined her olfactory sense under a perfumer from Picot Laboratories, a perfumery house in the UK. After an intense symposium in 2015 involving scientists, academicians and perfume makers at Museum Tinguely, Basel, she decided to impart her learnings in India. Through her initiative, MoLabs, in Goa, she conducts workshops to educate people about sense of smell and its influence in everyday life. Like fingerprints, every person has a different smell. She says, "One's smell is dependent on environment, water consumed, exercise, products used for personal hygiene and how your body processes food."

Ghurde's statement corroborates with a 2012 research paper published at the Duke University, USA. According to the research team, a difference at the 'smallest level of DNA – one amino acid on one gene – determines whether you find a given smell pleasant or not. "A different amino acid on the same gene in your friend's body could mean s/he finds the same odour offensive," the paper said.

Same smell, different reactions
Scientific studies also reveal that there are about 400 genes coding for the receptors in our noses and more than 9,00,000 variations of those genes. These receptors control the sensors that determine how we smell.

There are two paths to smelling, orthonasal olfaction – odours inhaled through the nostrils – and retronasal olfaction – identifying smells inhaled from the nose cavity at the back of the mouth, while chewing food.

Ghurde says olfactory neurons are the only neurons in the body that get renewed every 4-8 weeks. "Once triggered, they travel through the olfactory tract straight to the amygdala, thalamus and neocortex regions in the brain to trigger fight response, recall memories or make your mouth water in an instant."

On another note, as individuals, we constantly evolve and outgrow our tastes. Enough reason why people change their perfumes or react differently to the same smell over time.

Pregnant women experience a heightened sense of smell, while older people tend to put on more perfume because their sense of smell weakens as their body's receptors get blocked over time. "After 40, the sense of smell can deteriorate if one is a smoker or has had a head injury."

Smells can also influence our decision-making process. It's the reason why we gravitate towards a particular product. "The smell of fresh bread can make one feel hungry even when not. Also, studies indicate that within 30 seconds of shaking hands with someone new, you will somehow find a way to smell your hand! You might touch your nose or area around it to gauge a person and create a smell profile."

"Any adult can easily identify around 10,000 smells," she adds.

But with tons of new scents produced every year, Ghurde's workshops can help one find their smell preferences and what's most attuned to their personality. "One can get exhausted smelling 5-7 fragrances. It's better you already know what you want before entering a store and ask to be shown options of that scent," adding, "The right scent can make you the person you imagine yourself to be."