Dr. John Prescott and Jenell Wilkie from the Department of Psychology at James Cook University in Australia have produced an interesting piece of research. The study measured pain tolerance (as induced by immersing the subjects’ hands in frigid water, a common way to induce pain experimentally without being overly brutal) while various scents were applied via a mask. They used three types of smells: sweet & pleasant (caramel), unsweet but still pleasant (aftershave) and unpleasant (civet musk). Those subjects exposed to the caramel smell were able to keep their hands in the cold water more than twice as long as those who were exposed to either of the other scents or those not exposed to an odor.
I’m always looking for ways to reduce discomfort for kids during painful procedures, so this is interesting to me. We’ve known for a long time that sweet taste diminishes pain (breastfeeding during immunizations, Sweet-Ease in the NICU). Now it seems that sweet smells do the same. I’m curious what other scents might work to produce the same effect. I also wonder what aftershave they used!
Hat Tip: Mixing Memory, via Mind Hacks.
5 responses so far ↓
1
Chris
// Jul 8, 2007 at 12:33 am
They used Parfums Bleu.
2
knightindragonland
// Jul 8, 2007 at 10:39 am
Thanks, Chris. I appreciate the input.
3
jenjw4
// Jul 9, 2007 at 8:37 am
Hmmm.. maybe there would be a good potential for use in dentistry?
4
knightindragonland
// Jul 9, 2007 at 11:59 am
Definitely, Jen. Surprisingly this study did not note an increased sensitivity to pain with the noxious smell. I’ve fortunately only had a couple cavities in my lifetime, but the smell of burning enamel from the drill is quite unpleasant. The noxious smell certainly seemed to increase my discomfort, but these findings don’t support that.
5
Michelle
// Jul 9, 2007 at 6:15 pm
Interesting … maybe there’s more to aromatherapy than I thought ….
Tell me what candle to burn or herb to sniff to reduce stress, please.
And speaking of sweet tastes reducing pain … Yes, I used to always breastfeed my first child during her shots and it worked very well. I don’t think she ever reacted to the needle.
A Jewish woman once told me that during circumcision, the traditional thing to do was to give the baby a bit of sweet wine during the bris to reduce the pain. I find that interesting. Obviously people have known for centuries that sweetness reduces pain, another example of traditional wisdom being proven right by modern science. (The more obvious way to reduce circumcision pain, of course, is just to NOT CIRCUMCISE, since the foreskin is a normal, useful body part, but if people are determined to go through with removing it, I’m in favor of anything at all that might make it less painful for the baby.)
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