Scent & The Attachment to Our Memories
If you’ve ever caught yourself smelling a candle, object or simply going through some memorabilia, it can warm your heart or make you homesick. Our sense of smell is the strongest connection we have to our memories.
Scientists believe that smell and memory are so closely linked because the anatomy of the brain allows olfactory signals get to the limbic system very quickly. Experts say the memories associated with smells tend to be older and thought about less often, meaning the recollection is very vivid when it happens.
A 2010 study published in The American Journal of Psychology found that memories associated with smells were not necessarily more accurate, but tended to be more emotionally evocative. Typically the most salient odors are ones that are infrequently experienced, so when they are smelled they have a specific association. “They often are ones that were initially experienced at a younger age,” Dalton says.
