Stop Stress With Natural Scents

Smelling certain natural fragrances may help tame your stress, a new study shows. In tests on rats, scientists disocvered that animals that inhaled the scent of linalool (a compound found in lemons, oranges, basil, mangos, grapes, lavender, and other foods and flowers) had a decrease in their levels of stress-elevated immune cells. Study results also showed that sniffing linalool helped dampen the activity of a number of genes that tend to be overactivated in moments of stress.

Practitioners of aromatherapy often use linalool-rich essential oil to relieve stress, improve mood, promote sleep, and ease symptoms of depression. Essential oils commonly used to lessen nervous tension and anxiety include lavender, rose, jasmine, geranium, bergamot, cypress, melissa, neroli, sandalwood, and ylang-ylang.