Smell makes me remember certain events better… Helps improve symptoms of depression
Entered 2024.02.15 21:05 Entered 2024.02.15 21:05 Modified 2024.02.15 15:29 Views 172
A study found that smelling a familiar smell helped people with depression recall certain autobiographical memories. [사진=게티이미지뱅크]A study suggests that smelling a familiar smell can help people with depression recall specific autobiographical memories and could potentially help alleviate symptoms. Autobiographical memory refers to personal memories about one’s life.
This study conducted by researchers at the University of Pittsburgh in the United States showed that scents were more effective than words in reviving memories of specific events. By applying this in a clinical environment, it appears that it can help patients with depression break away from constantly repeating negative thoughts and reorganize their thinking patterns, allowing for faster and smoother treatment.
Dr. Kimberly Young, an associate professor of psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh and author of the study, believes that using the amygdala, which directs attention and concentration to important events, may help recall memories better, and that when the amygdala is activated, patients with depression are able to remember more effectively. I decided to experiment to see if I could access it. According to Dr. Young, people with depression have difficulty recalling certain autobiographical memories.
In this study, the experiment was conducted using a simpler method instead of brain scanning, which is expensive and less accessible. The researchers prepared participants with several opaque glass bottles containing familiar scents, such as orange, ground coffee, shoe polish, and Vicks VapoRub, and asked them to smell them and recall specific memories.
The results of the experiment showed that people who received smell clues were more likely to recall memories more strongly than people who received word clues. People who received the smell cue were more likely to recall memories of specific events (such as the fact that they went to a cafe last Friday) than general memories (such as having been to a cafe).
Additionally, memories triggered by smells were much more vivid, immersive, and realistic. What’s interesting is that even though participants were not specifically instructed to recall positive memories, they were more likely to recall positive events.
Dr. Young is preparing to conduct more technically advanced research using brain scans to demonstrate that odors, compared to word cues, act more effectively on the amygdala in patients with depression. “Improving memory can improve problem solving, emotion regulation, and other functional problems that patients with depression often experience,” he said.
The results of this study were published in the American Medical Association journal JAMA Network Open under the title ‘Recall of Autobiographical Memories Following Odor vs Verbal Cues Among Adults With Major Depressive Disorder’.
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2024-02-15 12:08:56
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