The most versatile pleasant fragrance

Biologists from Karolinska University in Sweden decided to find out which smells can be considered the most universally pleasant - that is, those that do not cause rejection in most people.

IN researchThe perception of odor pleasantness is shared across cultures / Current Biology 225 people from different parts of the world took part. These are residents of large cities in Mexico and Thailand, as well as seven tribes and peoples living in different areas and hunting, gathering and farming, such as the Semelai (an indigenous people of Malaysia) and the Seri Indians (Mexico).

The sample also included data from a similar randomized researchOlfactory perception of chemically diverse molecules / Springer Link 2016, which was attended by 61 volunteers from the United States. In its course, scientists analyzed the perception of 480 odor molecules in different concentrations.

Comparison of reviews showed that the most universally pleasant smell of the analyzed is vanillin. This does not mean that the majority of the participants liked the smell of vanilla - rather, the majority found it pleasant or neutral.

The most unpleasant odor, according to most, is isovaleric acid. It is found in soy milk and cheese, and is also partly responsible for the "flavor" of sweaty feet.

They also found that cultural preferences for pleasant and unpleasant odors played a minimal role (6%), while individual preferences had a much larger influence (54%).