Everyone enjoys inhaling a beautiful perfume and frowns under the influence of an obnoxious smell. The effect upon us is relaxing in the case of the scent of a rose, and we all get tense if we have to suffer a bad odour. When in good health we feel vital and mentally fit as well as enjoying keen senses.

Although the basic function of our sense of smell is to protect us and warn of any danger, the positive delight we take in perfumes adds an important sensory pleasure to life. It is so important in our lives that those whose olfactory sense is impaired lost a degree of enthusiasm about living, particularly as their taste tends to be affected also.

There is a direct relationship between our sense of smell and our breathing. Of course this is obvious to us when we realize that we can only register scent by inhalation. If we hold the breath, or if we have a cold or sinus trouble and the nasal passages are blocked, we cannot smell anything at all.

So perfumes and aromatic enjoyments are an important part of living, and have a prominent place in all human cultures, from the most primitive to the highly sophisticated.

They play a role in our lives in a variety of ways and we can learn to use them to advantage. For instance in the case of real estate, many sales have been lost by agents failing to ventilate a house before showing clients through. Yet the simple addition of a pleasing aroma, whether it is incense, coffee or freshly baked bread will make prospective buyers amenable to consider the house as their future home.

We know the powerful affect perfumes have upon our memory but they also strongly influence our emotional moods and mental states.

To study what natural oils and perfumes offer and how to use them to advantage is to add to the pleasures of life. Some have a healing influence and helping reduce our levels of stress. There are many interesting discoveries to be made about this subtle but important sense of ours that uses perfumes to nourish both brain and mental faculties.