TAKE NOTE

COFFEE + COCOA

Follow along as we focus on a scent to uncover its notes, plus other fascinating facts about scent, memory, mental health and more!

"...nothing revives the past so completely as a smell that was once associated with it."

-Vladimir Nabokov

When I was a child, I woke every morning to the smell of Folgers wafting in from the kitchen. You remember the jingle... "The best part of wakin' up is Folgers in your cup....", Well, I disliked that smell. A lot. It wasn't until I was an adult that I started to love the deep, rich, comforting smell of coffee brewing (even Folgers). Though I disliked the smell of coffee then, I have a warm feeling every time I smell it. That is because it triggers the memories around that brewing... feeling the love and warmth from my mom while her slippered feet shuffled across the kitchen linoleum, coffee mug in hand, bright pink plastic rollers in hair, toasting bread and pouring cheerios for me and my sister before school (#highcarblife).

Scent and memory are closely tied together. In fact, scientist have discovered why and how that happens. It's about to get science-y. When you smell something, odor molecules enter your nose and stimulate receptors that send signals to the olfactory bulb, a structure located just above the nasal cavity. Unlike sight, sound, and touch—which are routed through a brain relay station called the thalamus first—smell has a more direct pathway to areas involved in emotion and memory.

The olfactory bulb is closely connected to:

• Amygdala — processes emotions such as comfort, fear, joy, and nostalgia.

• Hippocampus — helps create and store memories.

  
  

Because these areas are activated almost immediately when we smell something, odors (fragrances instead of odors) often become "tagged" with emotional experiences. Years later, encountering the same, (nostalgic) scents can instantly bring back vivid memories and feelings.

Scientists first noticed this phenomenon long before modern brain imaging existed. In the early 1900s, French writer and researcher Marcel Proust famously described how the smell and taste of a madeleine cake suddenly brought back detailed childhood memories.

Researchers became interested in why smells seemed to trigger memories more powerfully than sights or sounds. Today, brain scans such as fMRI studies show that scent activates emotional and memory centers more strongly than many other sensory experiences.

Researchers have also found that:

• Smell-triggered memories tend to be older than memories triggered by pictures or words.

• They are often more emotional and vivid.

• People frequently report feeling as though they are reliving the experience rather than simply remembering it.

  
  

This is why the smell of a campfire, a favorite perfume, a grandparent's house, fresh-cut grass, or a particular candle scent can transport you back to a specific moment in your life almost instantly.

COFFEE + COCOA

What can't you live without.... coffee or chocolate?

• COFFEE. IS. LIFE.
• Chocoholic here!
• Neither! Yuck!
• Both! I refuse to choose.