{"id":2001,"date":"2025-11-30T16:08:34","date_gmt":"2025-11-30T16:08:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cosmicessences.com\/?p=2001"},"modified":"2025-12-08T11:23:29","modified_gmt":"2025-12-08T11:23:29","slug":"la-via-olfattiva-della-natura","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cosmicessences.com\/en\/la-via-olfattiva-della-natura\/","title":{"rendered":"The olfactory way to the soul"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Essential Oils represent the aromatic principles of many plants, or parts of them. They\nconsist of complex mixtures of oily organic substances, mostly volatile, with different chemical\ncompositions (aldehydes, ketones, alcohols, phenols, terpenes, sesquiterpenes, esters, lactones,\nethers...) located in specific tissues of the plant. Essential oils fall under the broad category\nof Phytotherapy, as they are derived from plants through various extraction processes. Their\nhistory begins and leads back to ancient Egypt, where medicine, pharmacy, and perfumery\nwere sciences under the protection of Horus, 4500 years before Christ. Across eras, cultures,\nand geographies, we understand that essential oils have always been the foundation for the\ninteraction with the physical, mental, and spiritual health of humans.<\/p>\n

Moving to more recent times, around the 1940s, Jean Valnet and other researchers (such as Duraffourd, d\u2019Hervincourt, Lapraz, Franchomme) wrote about the subject, marking the transition from empirical\naromatherapy to the modern era and scientific approach to aromatherapy.<\/p>\n

I now report a short text from Dr. Leonardo Paoluzzi, whom I had the pleasure to personally\nmeet. Italian physician and maximum expert on essential oil\u2019s use in the medicine field.<\/p>\n

Congress of S.I.Fit (Societ\u00e0 Italiana di Fitoterapia) (Italian Society of Phytotheraphy), 2010 Boario\nTerme (Brescia).
<\/em>\u201cEssential oil\u2019s use throughout their energy\u201d<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

What I presented was directly inspired by the French Society of Phyto Aromatherapy of\nDuraffourd, d\u2019Hervincourt, Lapraz, students of Master Jean Valnet. This report, compared to others,\nhad the distinctive trait of considering the use of essential oils starting from the assessment of\nindividual psycho-biological and emotional ground, established through an overall evaluation,\nallowing to categorise the diverse subjects based on their neuroendocrine reactivity, therefore\nvagal or sympathetic. All of this was wonderfully combined with my studies in Traditional Chinese medicine, which I began in 1976, that took into account the individual, not just on its organs taken and evaluated separately, anatomically, but included in a comprehensive context following a comprehensive and holistic, energetic, parameter. Therefore, the essential oil was considered not exclusively for its chemical contents, singularly analysed and evaluated, but as a phytocomplex within the plant complex, whose outcome was demonstrated in energetic and informational terms.<\/em><\/p>\n

With such premises the paradigm changed, from receptor site to informational, capable of operating straight to an overall level by means of superior nerve centers, regulator of neuroendocrine and immune answers, given that the stimulation enables a very specific biological cascade (vagal-sympathetic).<\/em><\/p>\n

The holistic insight of the human brings along the living connection between organs and\nsystems, with an important reference to care not only for the anatomical side, which presents\ndisorders, but also the organism in its wholeness. An instance for all: the close connection\nbetween skin and intestines, skin and nervous system, skin and respiratory system and so on.\nIn 2008 I had already published and important and ground-breaking volume entitled \u201cPhytos\nOlea - Sull\u2019uso degli oli essenziali\u201d (\u201cPhytos Olea - About the use of essential oils\u201d), in which is\npresented a medical matter, not certainly exhaustive, of 48 essential oils. Those were studied\nand clinically used following the criterion of PNEI field and 39 vegetal oils: essential elements\nfor the correct use of the former.<\/em><\/p>\n

Some years later, in 2012 I was called by the Director of the Hospital of Bibbiena (AR), in Casentino, to discuss the potential use of essential oils in delivery\nrooms. The main focus was to enhance both the psychic and physical well-being of new\nmothers with the purpose of better delivery. Thus making sure that the patient would not face\ndraining hours of labour, perineal lacerations, episiotomy procedures or caesarean delivery\n(see the numerous works in London nurseries).<\/em><\/p>\n

Concretely<\/em><\/p>\n

The first slides of my report highlighted that essential oils could be used in two ways: a\nchemical route and an energetic route, focused on four different spheres of action: infectious,\npercutaneous, psychic, and digestive, choosing time after time the best route of administration.\nBut since, in the end, beyond the selected route and the field to handle, everything comes\ninto the blood and from there to the limbic system (amygdala, hippocampus, etc.), responsible\nfor our emotions and the neuro-hormonal and immune response, I believe that the preferred\nroute of administration is inhalatory\/olfactory (Olfacto therapy), relegating others to the\nbackground.<\/em><\/p>\n

It took some time before the idea of a scientific society dedicated to essential oils was\nconceived. Society of which I was one of the founders and the representative for Umbria\nand Marche. Today, essential oils are being wildly discussed, and I hope that in the future, their\nstudy and medical application will become part of daily practice. This would help prevent the\nreckless use of synthetic chemical substances, which greatly contribute to antibiotic resistance\nand offer little to no benefit in treating nervous system disorders.<\/em><\/p>\n

Leonardo Paoluzzi \u201cAromaterapia: ieri-oggi-domani\u201d Istituto Superiore di Ricerca in Medicina Tradizionale e Antropologica. Ed. Morphea 2019<\/em><\/p>\n


<\/strong><\/p>\n

OLFATORY MEMORY NETWORKS: FROM THE EMOTIONAL LEARNING TO SOCIAL BEHAVIOURS<\/strong><\/p>\n

Odors have a strong impact on emotions and memory due to their direct connection with\nthe limbic system, bypassing thalamus. This gives to the sense of smell a unique influence on\nthe mood, learning, and social interactions. Smell is crucial for survival, allowing the recognition\nof predators, food and social partners. The role of odors is highly conserved across the species\nand it early develops. Due to the similar structure of the olfactory system in mammals, it is\nan ideal model for studying behaviour and neural mechanisms. The limbic brain plays a central\nrole in the regulation of emotions and behaviors, as described by Paul D. MacLean\u2019s \u201cTriune\nBrain\u201d theory. It acts as a link between the reptilian brain, responsible for primary instincts, and\nthe cortical brain, the seat of complex thought.\u201d<\/p>\n

The main structures of the limbic brain include:<\/p>\n

\u2022 The amygdala<\/strong>, engaged in emotional responses, mainly fear and emotional memory<\/p>\n

\u2022 The hippocampus<\/strong>, crucial for memory and learning.<\/p>\n

\u2022 The cingulate cortex<\/strong>, which regulates emotions, stress and pain.<\/p>\n

\u2022 The thalamus<\/strong>, communicator of sensory information to emotional regions.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Ventral Tegmental Area<\/b>, part of the reward system, adjusting pleasure and motivation.<\/p>\n

The research is divided into five areas:<\/p>\n

1. Memory and human olfactory perception<\/strong>: Experts demonstrate specific brain activation.\nSmell is crucial in episodic memory and threat perception. Olfactory discrimination can be\nimproved through learning.<\/p>\n

: Odors can be conditioned. Obesity influences\nolfactory sensitivity. Orexinergic system modulates the perception of food-related odors.<\/p>\n

5. Odors and social behaviour<\/strong>:Smell is essential for mother-infant recognition, social learning, and the transmission of food preferences. Predator odors evoke fear response, influenced by serotonin.<\/p>\n

5. Smell and Sniffing<\/strong>:: Smell is closely linked to respiration. Sniffing behavior varies based on context and odor pleasantness. Sniffing helps in exploration and odor perception, which can evoke emotional memories and influence mood. The olfactory system is plastic: experience can alter its sensitivity and associations, with short- or long-term effects.<\/p>\n

5. Olfactory memory<\/strong>: The sense of smell is involved in memory processes. Sleep helps consolidate olfactory memories, and the brain can associate odors with visual contexts. Studies shows the importance of smell for emotions, learning, and social behavior, with potential applications in clinical and therapeutic fields.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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References:<\/em><\/p>

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<\/em>Ferry, B. (2014). The orexinergic system influences conditioned odor aversion learning in the rat: a theory on the processes and hypothesis on the circuit involved. Front. Behav. Neurosci. 8:164. doi: 10.3389\/fnbeh.2014.00164
<\/em>Fitzgerald, B. J., Richardson, K., and Wesson, D. W. (2014). Olfactory tubercle stimulation alters odor preference behavior and recruits forebrain reward and motivational centers. Front. Behav. Neurosci. 8:81. doi: 10.3389\/fnbeh.2014.00081
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<\/em>Huo, Y., Fang, Q., Shi, Y. L., Zhang, Y. H., and Zhang, J. X. (2014). Chronic exposure to a predator or its scent does not inhibit malemale competition in male mice lacking brain serotonin.\u00a0Front. Behav. Neurosci.\u00a08:116. doi: 10.3389\/fnbeh.2014.00116
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<\/em>Torquet, N., Aime, P., Messaoudi, B., Garcia, S., Ey, E., Gervais, R., et al. (2014). Olfactory preference conditioning changes the reward value of reinforced and non-reinforced odors. Front. Behav. Neurosci. 8:229. doi: 10.3389\/fnbeh.2014.00229
<\/em>Saive, A. L., Royet, J. P., and Plailly, J. (2014a). A review on the neural bases of episodic odor memory: from laboratory-based to autobiographical approaches. Front. Behav. Neurosci. 8:240. doi: 10.3389\/fnbeh.2014.00240
<\/em>Saive, A. L., Royet, J. P., Ravel, N., Thevenet, M., Garcia, S., and Plailly, J. (2014b). A unique memory process modulated by emotion underpins successful odor recognition and episodic retrieval in humans.\u00a0Front. Behav. Neurosci.\u00a08:203. doi: 10.3389\/fnbeh.2014.00203
<\/em>Sirotin, Y. B., Costa, M. E., and Laplagne, D. A. (2014). Rodent ultrasonic vocalizations are bound to active sniffing behavior. Front. Behav. Neurosci. 8:399. doi: 10.3389\/fnbeh.2014.00399
<\/em>Takahashi, L. K. (2014). Olfactory systems and neural circuits that modulate predator odor fear. Front. Behav. Neurosci. 8:72. doi: 10.3389\/fnbeh.2014.00072
<\/em>Tong, M. T., Peace, S. T., and Cleland, T. A. (2014). Properties and mechanisms of olfactory learning and memory.\u00a0Front. Behav. Neurosci.\u00a08:238. doi: 10.3389\/fnbeh.2014.00238
<\/em>Soudry et al. (2011). Olfactory system and emotion: Common substrates. European Annals of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Diseases.
<\/em>Sullivan, R. M., Wilson, D. A., Ravel, N., & Mouly, A.-M. (2015). Olfactory memory networks: from emotional learning to social behaviors. Front. Behav. Neurosci. doi: 10.3389\/fnbeh.2015.00036
<\/em>Massri, M.B.; et al. (2022). Harvesting Context and Mining Emotions Related to Olfactory Cultural Heritage.\u00a0Multimodal Technol. Interact.\u00a06, 57. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mti6070057<\/em><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Gli oli essenziali rappresentano i principi odoriferi di moltissime piante, o parti di esse. Sono costituiti da miscele complesse di sostanze organiche oleose, per lo pi\u00f9 volatili, di costituzione chimica diversa (aldeidi, chetoni, alcoli, fenoli, terpeni, sesquiterpeni, esteri, lattoni, eteri…) localizzate in particolari tessuti del vegetale. Gli oli essenziali sono dentro il grande capitolo della […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2001","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cosmicessences.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2001","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cosmicessences.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cosmicessences.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cosmicessences.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cosmicessences.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2001"}],"version-history":[{"count":22,"href":"https:\/\/www.cosmicessences.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2001\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3096,"href":"https:\/\/www.cosmicessences.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2001\/revisions\/3096"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cosmicessences.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2001"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cosmicessences.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2001"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cosmicessences.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2001"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}