How Functional Fragrance Transforms Your Mood

Aromatherapy uses plant extracts to alter our mental and physical state. You can reap the mental benefits of essential oils primarily through inhalation (diffusing), or through topical skin application with the use of base oils.

Essential oils are potent, concentrated plant derivatives (obtained through methods such as cold press extraction or steam distillation), and when our bodies come into contact with essential oils, we absorb the antimicrobial, antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral and anti-inflammatory properties present in this plant matter. These different antimicrobials, antibacterial, antifungal, antiseptic, antiviral, and anti-inflammatory properties are what help keep our bodies healthy, protecting us from cold and flu and other physical ailments.

When applying topically to the skin, the small molecular size of the essential oils allows the oils to permeate the skin and enter the bloodstream, where they have an impact on our body for up to 20 minutes. Using aromatherapy along with massage therapy allows us to tackle ailments such as joint and muscle pain.

When we inhale essential oils, the aroma molecules travel up to our olfactory pathway, to our brain’s limbic system, where emotion and memory are stored. Lavender oil, for example, has anticonvulsant, antidepressive, anxiolytic, sedative, and calming properties, and when we use lavender oil, we begin to feel the impact it has on our nervous system.

For functional fragrance to be aromatherapy, it must be 100% pure essential oil, with no additives. Often time, essential oils are commonly mixed with base oils (ie vegetable oils such as almond oil, grapeseed oil, jojoba oil) to make them safe for topical use – this is still considered aromatherapy, as the base oil is also natural (vegetable derivatives) and often cold expressed (not processed), and is a safe way of applying essential oils directly to the skin. Essential oils are extremely potent and concentrated and should always be used diluted when applying to the skin.

How Functional Fragrance Works

The more processed an essential oil is, the more it begins to lose its therapeutic benefits. Aromachology is simply about the psychological effects scent has on the brain, whereas aromatherapy (a subset of aromachology), is specifically about the therapeutic benefits pure, natural essential oils have on the brain. When reading labels, if it says ‘parfum’ or ‘fragrance’ under the ingredients list, it’s a pretty clear indicator that it contains a synthetic fragrance and is not a 100% essential oil, meaning the product will have a pleasant aroma, but will not deliver the same therapeutic benefits of essential oils.

Aromatherapy has been used throughout the years to help ease both physical and psychological pain. Ancient cultures from India, China, and Egypt all used essential oils for medicinal, spiritual, and cosmetic purposes.

A functional fragrance like essential oils is a tool for creating a self-care process, and while lavender won’t cure a diagnosed anxiety disorder, it will certainly help with relieving everyday feelings of anxiousness. We liken it to going for a run – going for a run won’t be the cure for obesity, but rather it will serve as a tool to help fight obesity in conjunction with other tools such as proper nutrition, etc. Essential oils won’t cure any ailments overnight, but when used daily as part of a self-care process, they begin to do wonders for our moods, our mental state, and our physical bodies.

To learn more about functional fragrance, check out our interview with NYLON Magazine.