Smell is one of the five senses. The olfactory system, which detects and processes odors, is one of the oldest and most important parts of the brain for life. Who can say that smell is not important?
It is very important! However, it is not equally important to each of us in the same situation. What do I mean by this? The easiest way to describe it is with the example of perfumes: what smells good to you may not to me, or even stinks to me, and vice versa. Smells evoke many ideas and feelings in us, because our perception of smell depends on the brain, which processes information about smell.
Claim No. 1: WHAT SMELLS IS PLEASANT
The sensory cells of the sense of smell are adapted to detect volatile substances in the inhaled air. We draw them through the nostrils into the nasal cavity. A pleasant smell is associated with joy, comfort, relaxation, and attractiveness. But what is a pleasant smell? I find the smell of freshly cut grass pleasant, it calms me, but my husband smells unbearably, and at the same time he starts sneezing... Then you know who mows the lawn at home! The pleasantness of smell is certainly a very personal question, which is also associated with a positive or negative physical response (e.g. allergic reactions...). Cosmetic factories pay a lot of attention to smell. Before launching a new scent on the market (as a stand-alone perfume or as a fragrance for a cosmetic product), they test it on representatives of the target customers of this product. Versions of the same product can also be created, differing in smell. You choose the version of the product that you find pleasant.
Claim No. 2: THE STRONGER IT SMELLS, THE MORE PLEASANT IT IS
Ugh, I disagree! I'm one of those people with an exceptionally good nose, I smell too well. And when I'm with a friend who's treated herself to a strong evening perfume for an evening out, I usually end up with a headache. On the other hand, I know people who have a bad sense of smell and only when the intensity of the smell increases do they feel pleasant sensations from the smell. Because they didn't detect anything before. They never manage to detect certain smells! How different we are!
Claim No. 3: WE SMELL THOUSANDS OF DIFFERENT SCENTS
This is true for most animals; the human olfactory system is extremely poor compared to that of animals. This has happened due to differences in survival abilities over our long history, as smell has gradually ceased to be a factor in the survival of the human species compared to animals.
As an interesting fact, the human nose has the ability to detect even lower concentrations of some molecules than today's most modern measuring instruments. One example is DMS (dimethyl sulfide), a gas that smells like coal. I used to drive from Celje to Velenje every day for work and on a specific part of the route before Velenje I smelled this gas. Since I worked in an analytical laboratory and we also measured DMS instrumentally, I read several studies on such molecules, to which our olfactory system is particularly sensitive.
Claim No. 4: COSMETICS MUST SMELL
I agree. And here we are again in the debate about what smells good to you and how strong the scent has to be for the product to still smell good to you. It is interesting what the difference is in the perception of fragrances of cosmetic products between fans of natural cosmetics and classic cosmetics. Fans of natural cosmetics want to have products that smell like lavender, orange, lemongrass, maybe geranium... Fans of classic cosmetics want to smell their favorite perfume in their cosmetic products (which, by the way, is far from natural ingredients).
CONCLUSION
From the written statements, I can confirm that cosmetics MUST smell. At least a little – that the wolf is full and the goat is whole. As a formulator and creator of natural cosmetic products, I adhere to the principle that the product must have the smell of natural essences. At the same time, I am convinced that this smell should be subtle or that it dissipates quickly after applying the product. Because I smell so well myself, I always get annoyed when people walk past me and smell powder on one, fabric softener on another, deodorant on a third, and everyone uses their own perfume. Therefore, when creating my natural products, I advocate this ²fragrance theory²: buy products that have no smell or are lightly scented, and use your chosen beloved perfume as the only fragrance. This way, this smell can really radiate from you – without competing with powder, fabric softener or hairspray.