Living Magazine Spring 2015 Living Magazine | Page 20

THE POWER OF
Dr. David K. Hill, CMO, Chairman of the Scientific Advisory Board

Our sense of smell is the frontline modality by which we experience
the world around us; however, many people may underestimate its
significance. By comparison, humans have a weaker sense of smell than
many animals, which must use smell for sustaining basic life functions
(tracking food, identifying a mate, etc.). Although your nose may not
be as acute as that of a bloodhound, you can still detect thousands of
varieties of odors in infinitesimal quantities. Only in recent years have
researchers begun to unlock the complexities that make up the sense of
smell and, in turn, have reported that smell sensitivity is actually much
more significant than previously predicted. In fact, our
sense of smell is directly linked to our physical and
mental health profiles.

The Aroma of Essential Oils
When it comes to essential oils, their powerfully
fragrant aromas are the first thing we notice as we
unscrew the bottle cap. By definition, essential oils
are a rich mixture of volatile aromatic compounds.
Because of their volatility, aroma is actually an intrinsic
feature to essential oils, or in other words, essential oils
are their aroma. Aroma in a “chemical” sense means
that individual compounds (in this case, essential oil
constituents) are able to interact with olfactory
(smell) receptors in the nose. Not every type
of compound elicits an aroma, because the
compounds have to be very small and
readily evaporate into the air. Essential oil
compounds meet both of these criteria
and are able to quickly and easily
bind to smell receptors in the nose.
The chemistry of essential oils
varies widely from oil to oil,
which explains why essential
oils possess such widely
different aromas, and
thus, affect us in
different ways.

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