What is olfactory memory?

When the aroma of a freshly baked cake reminds you of your childhood birthday parties, the smell of homemade soup reminds you of your grandmother, or a certain perfume transports you back to a certain time, it's not by chance! It's because of your olfactory memory.

Olfactory memory is completely personal, unique and non-transferable , and it allows you to relive moments in just a few seconds. Let's tell you a little more about this wonder.

How olfactory memory works

Although we do not take it into account in our daily life and we prioritize other senses such as sight or hearing, our life would not be the same without the powerful sense of smell . It is directly linked to memory, so it has a strong connection with emotions and our mood.

You're probably wondering how the sense of smell and memory are connected . Well, through a brain process that is as complex as it is interesting.

In the nasal passages are the olfactory receptors, known as olfactory epithelia , which are responsible for capturing olfactory stimuli and sending a signal to the olfactory bulb ; responsible in turn for processing these stimuli and connecting them with different parts of the brain, especially with the limbic system .

The limbic system

The limbic system is a part of the brain that processes emotional information and helps consolidate memories, as it has structures specifically dedicated to this. Among them we highlight:

• The amygdala , since it is the organ responsible for associating aroma with emotions.
• And the hippocampus , which relates aromas to memories.

This magnificent combo creates the relevant connections for the olfactory memory to work, and thus, when we perceive a certain smell, we are transported to the place or moment in which we smelled it for the first time.

As you can see, the human being is an extraordinary machine, because although we do not have a sense of smell as developed as that of many animals, we do have the ability to relate those olfactory stimuli to our memory , thus evoking vivid memories.

Smell and memory

Olfactory memory determines our perception of people and places, since the emotional effects that smells transmit to us are what determine our reaction.

People begin to incorporate memories into their olfactory memory very early on , so much so that we start doing so when we are in our mother's womb! This makes babies recognize their mother's smell from the very first moment.

Over the years, we perfect our olfactory memory, and it ends up acquiring so much power that it can be responsible for completely changing our mood . In recent years, the great power of smell has been more than demonstrated, which is why techniques such as aromatherapy have emerged that delve into this fascinating world.

But olfactory memory is not only useful for evoking pleasant memories, it is also extremely useful for alarming us when faced with a smell that indicates a dangerous situation, such as the smell of burning or putrefaction.

The crux of the matter is that olfactory memory belongs entirely to the realm of the subconscious , so we are sorry to tell you that, no matter how hard we try, we cannot eliminate the link between certain smells and moments or people. A nuisance, because we already know that more than one person would like not to have to evoke their ex every time they smell their perfume…

Perfumes and olfactory memory

Speaking of perfumes , they have a great evocative power, since they are extremely striking smells for our sense of smell and end up being the ones we identify and relate to the most . For this reason, when a person is a regular at applying a certain perfume, it is identified by those around them by that aroma. Thus, even if that perfume is used by another different person, for our olfactory memory, that specific fragrance belongs to them and will lead us to remember it as their own aroma .

As you can see, thanks to olfactory memory, perfumes become our hallmark , what characterizes us, so we should not choose one lightly.

What? You still don't have a perfume that identifies you ? Well, don't wait any longer and take a look at the more than 550 fragrances that make up our catalogue ! Whether you like fruity perfumes , perfumes with notes of cinnamon or those that smell like cherries , we're sure that at DIVAIN we have one that you'll love and that you want to make your trademark.