Feeling Tired? It Might Be What You Smell

by thebeautybrains on September 16, 2007 · 3 comments

Here’s a bit of odor research showing that symptoms like fatigue, chest pain and lower back pain may actually be related to the odors you’re smelling.

Researchers had 194 people keep track of their stress levels and odor experiences overbad smell fatigue the course of 8 days. What they found was that physical symptoms actually got worse after people experienced intense odors. They don’t know exactly how the two are related but they believe that the memory of the odor becomes linked to the pain which triggers the sensation.

So what can the Beauty Brains community do about it? Well, you might keep a diary like the people in this study did. Anytime you feel fatigued or pain write down all the things that you smell. You may start to notice a pattern and start avoiding odors that trigger the symptoms.

{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }

Lucia Mancuso September 17, 2007 at 12:04 pm

It makes sense. When I enter a beauty store where many odors are in the air – I instantly get a head ache – which makes me tired and want to go home and sleep. I always make sure I go to Sephora last on my pit stop at the mall because I just want to go home after being around all those smells – even if I like them.

However I guess that is different than chest and back pain.

Left Brain September 17, 2007 at 9:15 pm

I always find going into Lush to be nauseating.

thehoopiestfrood September 20, 2007 at 12:49 pm

Oh, Left Brain, I agree with you entirely. I get proper hay fever/allergy symptoms just from standing outside Lush, I don’t dare venture inside any more. They last for a good day as well afterwards.

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