Scent and Memory Connections

Have you realized how a certain smell can transport you to a specific time and place that has been long forgotten? It can be the smell of an old book that reminds you of your childhood library, or a hand soap that takes you back to a garden that you visited with your parents during summer holiday. While all our senses relate to our memory, smell is the most direct sense.

Smell is the only sense that doesn’t pass through the thalamus before being passed through the brain’s cerebral cortex, it goes directly to the brain’s olfactory bulb. The olfactory bulb connects the brain to amygdala and hippocampus which is linked to memory and cognition. Neuroscientist believes that the close connection between them is the reason why smell is associated with memories throughout our life.

Thanks to these personal experiences, scent is a very subjective thing. It is different for everyone, and we would want to surround ourselves with the scents that can evoke good memories. Colors are also associated with scent, most people will connect citrus with orange and fresh tree leaf with green. Check out our colorful collection!