Humans living in modern society have a very poor sense of smell compared with those societies which live in close contact with nature, where their survival depends partly on this sense. Much of this deterioration of our sense of smell is due to the overwhelming numbers of chemicals we breathe that are not necessarily safe or healthy, yet we have to ignore the warning that a bad smell represents, since many of these smells are in our own home, and therefore we cannot walk away. The rich concoction of chemicals in the air that we breathe can have damaging effects on our mental and physical health.

The best way to avoid breathing these harmful or unpleasant smells is to introduce products into our home that are low-odour or odour-free. Use non-toxic cleaning agents, for instance herbal soaps, floor polishes and fabric shampoos - make sure they are either odour-free of have a natural fragrance. Bicarbonate of soda is very good for removing unpleasant smells from fridges and fabrics. Make sure you have adequate ventilation in all room, especially bathroom, toilets and kitchens. You can gradually replace sources of artificial and damaging smells, such as furniture, with those made of natural materials, and decorate your home with low-odour or natural paints.

Aromatherapy

You can also deliberately introduce pleasant and therapeutic smells through aromatherapy, by placing sweet smelling flowers around the home, growing aromatic plants, flowers and herbs in a window box or in the garden close to windows and doors, use a pomander, pot-pourri, scented candles and vaporisers with a few drops of essential oils.

What is Aromatherapy?

Aromatherapy is a branch of herbal medicine thought to have originated in either ancient India or China.

"Aromatherapy can be defined as the art and science of utilizing naturally extracted aromatic essences from plants to balance, harmonize and promote the health of body, mind and spirit. It is an art and science which seeks to explore the physiological, psychological and spiritual realm of the individual's response to aromatic extracts as well as to observe and enhance the individual's innate healing process. As a holistic medicine, Aromatherapy is both a preventative approach as well as an active treatment during acute and chronic stages of illness or 'dis'-ease.

It is a natural, non-invasive treatment system designed to affect the whole person not just the symptom or disease and to assist the body's natural ability to balance, regulate, heal and maintain itself by the correct use of essential oils.Aromatherapy is essentially an interaction between the therapist, client and essential oils, working together to bring forth the healing energy which will help the client regain their sense of well being and vitality." Jade Shutes