Why do smells reconnect us with our memories?

1 Min Read

Ever since I was a child I have always loved the smell of Vicks. The scent of eucalyptus brings me back to sitting in front of a fire when I was sick. Now as an adult I find myself putting it on even if I am not sick because it brings me back to my Zen and I feel relaxed. If I feel overwhelmed and stressed I will put a little Vicks on my wrist and I will feel better.

Smell is one of our strongest senses because any scent can transport us back to the original experience and connect you with a memory of a place, a person or a time in your life. The olfactory memory is a recollection of odour and triggers vivid memories that are linked to your memory and emotions. Which is why when I smell Vicks I am transported back into a child wrapped in a blanket in front of a fire.

So how does it relate to our brain's memory?

The scent is dispersed into the air by chemical molecules that are inhaled through your nose and dissolved within the mucus membrane in our nose. The mucus binds together with the olfactory receptors which is stimulated and produces an electrical signal. This signal travels through the olfactory bulb to different parts of our brain to be processed and stored.

Where does our brain store this information?

Whenever I smell a banana cake it reminds me of my mother’s famous banana cake as a child growing up. So if I walk past a bakery and smell a banana cake my nose processes the information to my brain. My brain gathers the connection of the smell from my memory and evokes my emotion that recalls the memory. This is how smells reconnect us with our memories. The olfactory memory unlocks a world of sensory experiences.

Next time you smell a candle or wax melt, see which scents bring back sweet memories from the past.