The Aromatic Experience from Fragrance in the Philippines

Introduction

Every day, your sense of smell influences your daily choices, thoughts, and memories—even when you don’t actively realize it. If you’re at a retail shop, hotel lobby, restaurant, or an office, the fragrances in the environment can make or break your experience. The pleasantness of a scent has a huge impact on your overall reality.

Memory and the sense of smell are also linked. In a 2004 study, Dr. Rachel Herz found out that when test subjects smelled an odor correlated with good memories, certain parts of their brains showed more activity. This is compared to just smelling a regulated perfume that they had never smelled before.

With concrete proof that fragrances can help make us feel good, stimulate happier memories, and evoke a whole range of thoughts and feelings, various scents are now applied to a wide range of products. These include soaps, washing powders, cosmetics, and even food.

What is Fragrance?

Fragrance is a complex mixture of natural and/or man-made substances applied to many consumer goods to give them their distinct scent. Its additives are extracted from either petroleum or natural and raw materials.

It is often used in an array of items, particularly cosmetic, laundry, and personal care products. This substance is used to establish a positive olfactory sensation and/or to block the inherent odor of other ingredients. The power of fragrance can never be underestimated, because it can compel, comfort, and excite consumers. It may also be used to alleviate tension, signify cleanliness, and entice all the other senses.

For many years, various industries have been taking advantage of the power of fragrances, because they contribute to people’s individuality, self-esteem, and personal hygiene. Due to their effect and attachment to product identity and acceptability, fragrances have been among the most important factors influencing people’s preferences.

Brief History of Fragrance

Fragrance dates back many centuries. It was first used by the ancient Egyptians as part of their rituals, and it was one of the first cosmetics used by early humans. Fragrance was originally used for cleansing rites, but from 1580 to 1085 BC, Egyptian women used it in creams and oils as a part of their toiletry and cosmetic supplies.

Various fragrance items were then introduced to Greece, Rome, and the Islamic World. Since the rise of Christianity and the collapse of the Roman Empire, the Islamic Community has continued to use these supplies. During the 12th century, the development of foreign trade allowed Asian countries to discover fragrances as well. China and Japan were among the first countries to produce fragrances derived from natural sources within the continent.

During the 16th century, the fragrance was widely used in England. Because Queen Elizabeth I dislikes foul odors, public spaces must be scented. As a result, making perfumes became a pastime for ladies at the time.

It wasn’t until the 17th century when the fragrance industry saw success, especially in France. Since scents were added not only to the skin, but also to clothes, fans, and pieces of furniture, Louis XV’s court was dubbed “the perfumed court.”

As technology and chemistry progressed, synthetic chemicals emerged, and the fragrance was quickly mass-produced. The invention of modern chemistry and evolving tastes laid the groundwork for perfumery as we know it today.

How is Fragrance Compounded?

Most of the scents in our world are one-of-a-kind, such as the fragrance of freshly baked biscuits, morning dew, the cooling zest of citrus, and so on. To create them, a fragrance artisan or perfumer creates a unique yet reproducible smell.

To start, a perfumer combines all the fragrance ingredients. While familiar scents might seem easy to replicate, the perfumer must still test and conduct experimental analyses to create a distinct composition. The perfumer also examines the odor tenacity of the additives and essential oils to see how they can keep their appealing odors for as long as possible.

Natural Fragrance

Natural fragrances are made up of essential oils and isolates obtained from botanical products. These include flowers, fruits, sap, nuts, or plant tissue, as well as the bark, leaves, stems, resins, or wood of certain trees. Any of its materials are generated by steaming or water distillation. Other naturals are made from absolutes, which are manufactured with hexane or petroleum ether.

Although the oils used in the actual phase are cleaned, they still contain trace quantities of petrochemicals. Naturals are more expensive and scarce because they must be harvested safely and shipped all over the world.

This type of fragrance is also formed in layers, steadily varying with the chemistry of your skin. It even evolves into its own distinct perfume, so you don’t smell like anyone else. Keep in mind that because everyone’s skin is different, the longevity, projection, and sillage will smell and last differently.

Natural fragrances are often not overpowering, remaining within a few feet of the skin. As a result, when you leave the room, your scent will leave as well.

Lastly, natural fragrances are more environmentally friendly because they do not contain harsh chemicals. It’s as if you’re receiving nature’s essence in its purest form. They are also useful to people who have chemical sensitivities or allergies because the synthetic smell and chemicals will not affect them.

Synthetic Fragrance

Synthetic fragrances, as opposed to natural fragrances, are created in laboratories so they imitate natural accords, such as those used in forestry and wildlife, without affecting the environment. These fragrances may contain either a mixture of natural ingredients or none at all. The method of creating synthetic fragrances allows for the repopulation of forests and the conservation of animals in areas where the extracts are used in common fragrances.

Aside from being better for the atmosphere and the environment, synthetic fragrances last longer due to fixatives that boost fragrance potency. Fragrances that use fixatives do not sour as easily as natural perfumes and stay richer and denser. Natural fragrances, for example, have a shelf life of 1-2 years, whereas synthetic fragrances can last up to 5 years.

Synthetic fragrances use man-made additives. Synthetic aromatic raw materials are chemically formed, primarily from petroleum. They also originated as naturals and had their chemical structures changed.

The three forms of synthetic fragrances are full synthetics, semi-synthetics, and natural isolates.

Full synthetics refer to fragrances that are almost entirely derived from petroleum byproducts. Semi-synthetics, meanwhile, are made of synthetic, natural, or artificially manipulated notes, and are often derived from all three. Finally, natural isolates are generated by combining synthetic and natural byproducts.

Natural Fragrance VS. Synthetic Fragrance

Fragrances have been used in lotions, deodorants, shampoos, sunscreens, hairspray, and even lipsticks. The ones that are used on these products are either from essential oils, synthetic scent oils, or a mixture of the two.

However, a nice smell does not imply that a fragrance is safe. As a result, there is a significant market trend in the personal care and fragrance industry that advocates for natural fragrances. Is it necessary, however, to choose between natural and synthetic fragrances?

If you’re concerned about health risks, synthetic fragrances might not be for you. Natural fragrances pose far less health risks than synthetic fragrances. Fixatives such as parabens, phthalates, and even formaldehyde are used in synthetic fragrances to slow down the evaporation process of aromatic compounds and make the smell last longer. Unfortunately, all these fixatives have been attributed to a variety of health problems.

Phthalates have been linked to endocrine disruption and hormonal imbalance, while parabens and formaldehyde are classified as carcinogens. The Environmental Working Group (EWG) discovered that synthetic fragrances included phthalates, which have been related to hormone disruption, sperm count reduction, reproductive malformation, and liver and breast cancer, diabetes, and obesity. Dr. Philip J. Landrigan of the Mount Sinai Children’s Environmental Health Center has also conducted research that connect prenatal exposure to synthetic fragrances with autism, ADHD, and neurological disorders.

Even without these additives, some synthetic fragrances have been linked to skin irritation, allergic reactions, and asthma attacks. Many additives have been considered unsafe for personal care by the International Fragrance Association (IFRA), and some have also been banned from fragrance products.

However, just because natural fragrances are safer than synthetic fragrances do not mean that synthetic fragrances are dangerous or inferior to naturally occurring compounds. Likewise, just because a product is natural does not mean it is non-toxic. Wild almonds, for example, contain lethal levels of cyanide. Potato plant fruit and leaves contain toxic tropane alkaloids that can damage the nervous system.

With this in mind, should you opt for natural or synthetic fragrances? It depends. Natural fragrances are ideal if you want a more subtle smell that is often safer to wear. However, if you want something potent and powerful that will attract a lot of attention as you step into the room, synthetic fragrances are the way to go.

Essential Oils

Essential oils are not really oils, because they lack the fatty acids that make up what would be deemed an authentic oil. They are highly concentrated plant constituents with medicinal, cosmetic, and other qualities.

Most essential oils have antibacterial, antifungal, and antiviral effects, making them an ideal addition to a variety of preparations. Lemon, grapefruit, eucalyptus, peppermint, tea tree, lavender, and rosemary, for example, are excellent cleaning oils.

The process of producing essential oils involves removing compounds from plants, either by cold pressing or by distillation with water or steam. The chemicals are then separated from these compounds, mixed with a carrier oil, and transformed into a functional substance. You might think from this process that essential oils are all-natural at first, but this is only true if the compounds are extracted without using chemicals.

Since essential oils have a small molecular scale, they are easily absorbed by the skin, making them ideal ingredients for personal care products that aim to heal, soften, and nourish. However, most essential oils can never be used on the skin undiluted. They should be mixed with carrier oils, waxes, butter, alcohols, or other diluting agents to avoid an unpleasant reaction and unhappy skin.

To see if your skin is sensitive to essential oils, mix one drop with 1/2 teaspoon carrier oil, such as olive, jojoba, or sweet almond oil. Wait a few hours after rubbing the mixture on the inside, upper portion of your arm. If there is no redness or itching, you are probably not allergic to the essential oil.

Another trick is to put a single drop of your essential oil on a sheet of construction paper to see how “pure” it is. It is pure if it evaporates easily and leaves no visible rim. If there is still a rim, it was most certainly filtered by the manufacturer. Bear in mind, though, that this test would not work with myrrh, patchouli, or absolutes.

Essential oils have a shelf life of at least 5 to 10 years, which means that one bottle will last you a decade if stored in dark glass bottles out of direct sunlight. Since they are so concentrated, only a small amount is needed in any operation. The only exception to this rule are citrus oils, which lose potency after a year or two.