Scientists have discovered that the smell of the room can affect the likelihood that people will not only dance but remember the experience in a positive light.

Maybe it was the smell of Old Spice that inspired 
these moves?

You can blame it on the sunshine, the moonlight and the smell of the room now that scientists have discovered the subliminal impact of smell in encouraging people to boogie.

Researchers trialled seasalt, orange and peppermint scents in order to find out if the smell of a room influenced people’s behaviour, specifically whether they would get up and dance and how they would reflect back on the experience.

Keeping as many factors the same (music, lighting, beverages, etc), the researchers found that scenting the room – regardless of what the scent was, so long as it was pleasant – seriously impacted whether people would dance.

People in a scented room versus a non-scented room also reported higher levels of enjoyment and used more positive language when recounting the experience.

Ideas for scents:

• Scented candles in the room
• Aromatherapy burners
• Strongly scented floral (or fruit/spice) arrangements
• Scented room spray
• Scented beverage service (ie coffee)
• Incense