Benefits of Fragrances

The use and enjoyment of fragrances and perfumes have endured throughout the centuries, from the rituals of ancient cultures to the diversity of todays lifestyles. In fact, as we celebrate the second millennium milestone, fragrances continue to play a beneficial and purposeful role in adding to the quality of life: a tradition as old as mankind.

The fragrance industry is a multi-faceted one, with fine fragrances holding a celebrity status within it. For those who wear them, perfumes and colognes elicit feelings of joy, confidence, and a sense of well-being. They also present their wearers with an opportunity to create for themselves a virtually unforgettable, personal trademark. A subtle splash of fragrance, when mixed with the power of the sense of smell, has the ability to spark cherished memories and a wealth of emotions that can lift spirits, enrich romance, improve ones mood, and lead to an overall feeling of happiness. Fragrances help make life complete. They highlight the importance of the sense of smell, an often forgotten human attribute that, like sight and sound, adds a priceless vibrancy to the tapestry of life.

Beyond the lure of the chiselled perfume bottle, fragrances are closely aligned with the benefits of other products, and, in fact, have come to enhance their effectiveness in the perception of those who use them. Researchers say that fragrances contained in household and personal products, from shampoo and cosmetics to laundry detergents and household cleaners, are near to synonymous with their perceived quality. Fragrances make clothes smell "clean," cosmetics "pretty," and households "well kept." Fragrances are key to building consumer confidence in the cleansing abilities of soap or multi-purpose cleaners, or the perceived skin improvement brought about by the use of cosmetics. In summary, fragrances enhance our enjoyment of using products of personal hygiene (e.g. toilet soap) and hence contribute to our cleanliness and general health.

Additionally, fragrances provide some other important functions. They have the ability to neutralize the unpleasant odours associated with many cleaning agents.

Culturally, the use of fragrances for religious purposes dates back to Egyptian times. In this regard, they create a mood, a certain atmosphere of reverence, that continues in customs today. Interestingly, from religious usage, the Egyptians first devised the concept of using fragrances in the home by bringing Kyphi, a sacred scent burned in their temples, into their dwellings.

Today, the notion of scent in the household persists as a lifestyle trend. Consumers look to a fragranced environment to add quality to their lives, enjoying such items as scented candles, fragrance sprays, shower gels and pomanders to provide the benefits they seek. Researchers claim the use of fragrances results in a positive psychological impact. For example, pleasant scents may heighten the senses and at the same time enhance the learning process. In addition, fresh scents may have an effect at keeping people alert. Fragrances also work to boost moods or provide a feeling of calmness in the midst of busy days.

While silently working with the sense of smell, fragrances and perfumes add an invisible colour to everyday life and special occasions, providing something of a deep, rich hue, which is often taken for granted. A walk outdoors would not be the same without the scent of pines or the smell of flowers. A world without fragrances would be comparable to a world without music, like a world without the vital shades that colour our planet, like never having experienced the lush green of a verdant pasture, or the stirring emotion of an orchestral masterpiece.

How pale life would be without them.