Written and verified by the psychologist GetPersonalGrowth.
Last update: 15 November 2021
The aroma of coffee it delights and stimulates us, there is nothing more comforting than letting yourself be enveloped by its scent every morning. Coffee is a pleasure for the senses, for the palate and also for the brain. A recent study reveals that its aroma is able to motivate us, to enhance our cognitive processes and even improve our mood.
Just open the coffee jar, no matter if it contains pods, whole or ground beans, the result will be the same: we will experience an intense olfactory pleasure from the first moment in which the aroma of the coffee invests us.. We also love its velvety texture that makes us travel to warm and enveloping places.
Among the many pleasures of the table, coffee is one of the most appreciated. It peeks into cheerfulness without intoxicating us, and the pleasant flow of the spirit it stimulates is not followed by sadness, languor, or weakness.
-Benjamin Franklin-
These very suggestive experiences are caused precisely by coffee; our wise and ever able brain is governed by one of the most powerful senses in most human beings: smell. The smell of coffee travels from the cerebral cortex directly to the limbic system, up to those wonderful brain areas in which emotions and memory share the same circuits, the same routes.
If the aroma of coffee improves our performance, it is not certain because it gives us super power or because it intensifies our skills. We are only talking about emotions and well-being, about a simple placebo effect. This is a very interesting fact, which is certainly worth dwelling on.
Our brains love the aroma of coffee
It is said that nowhere is as full of ideas as a cup of coffee. Writers, students, philosophers and anyone who uses coffee every morning to get going or in the evening to endure long hours of study or work know this well.
It is certainly no coincidence that coffee was Napoleon's favorite drink before starting any battle (despite his stomach thinking otherwise).
Caffeine is one of the most popular alkaloids in our brain. It is a natural stimulus for the nervous system, the effects of which begin to manifest themselves after the intake and last up to 6 hours. A sensational effect, and all thanks to its molecular structure. Caffeine is able to block adenosine receptors, molecules that induce sleep or the feeling of tiredness.
But that is not all. Coffee doesn't just help us wake up in the morning and improve our performance at work or in the study. In addition to doing this, it generates a feeling of pleasure and this thanks to dopamine. This neurotransmitter induces a very peculiar state of activity, well-being and motivation; this is also the reason why we sometimes develop a real addiction to coffee.
The aroma of coffee: a powerful tool unknown to many
A study published in June 2018 in the Journal of Environmental Psychology reveals a very interesting fact. The aroma of coffee improves our cognitive abilities; this means that it optimizes attention, analytical skills, problem solving and job and academic performance in general. It sounds like magic, but the author of the study, Dr. Adriana Madzharov, explains that it is pure and simple placebo effect. Curious, don't you think?
Coffee is a balm for the heart and the spirit.
-Giuseppe Verdi-
The researchers noted that when the aroma of coffee spreads in a room or bedroom, 90% of the people present experience a feeling of well-being. In addition, caffeine stimulates the brain, generates pleasure and activates brain functions.
Even the aroma alone can activate all these processes thanks to a path that starts from the cerebral cortex and reaches the limbic system.
The placebo effect has great power on the human being. Furthermore, neuromarketing experts often recall the power of smell. It is a practically underrated medium which, in reality, is the shortest way to reach emotions and memory; an excellent channel, able to generate inspiration, calm or activity, as well as to improve our capacity of attention and introspection, to make us more creative and receptive to the world around us.
Helen Keller, a famous writer and political activist, lost her sight and hearing when she was just over a year and a half old. Starting with this episode, Helen learned very early to tune into smells. Her world acquired shapes and shades thanks to the fragrances she perceived, to every smell she changed, to the nuances of every aroma, of the wind, of the earth or of the people around her.
The aroma of coffee was one of his favorite smells. Like this, his universe became infinite and immensely rich thanks to the power of smell. The marketing industry knows this well and even in the professional field it is beginning to be appreciated more and more. Sometimes the smell of vanilla, cinnamon, coffee or chocolate is enough to improve the mood and productivity of your employees.
