From the inhale to the smell perception

Did you know that our sense of smell is unique from the other senses of sight, touch, taste and hearing in that it is the ONLY sensory input that does not have to go through the thalamus in the brain stem before bring processed in the brain? The thalamus is the body's information relay station where information is processed before being sent to the cerebral cortex in the brain for interpretation.

Olfactory sensory neurons are in the nasal cavity and are not mediated by a protective barrier like other sensory receptor cells, like the cornea for the visual receptors and the ear drum by the hearing receptor. In other words, olfactory sensory neurons have direct contact with the brain.

As the molecules of an essential oil enter the nose it passes into the olfactory bulb that has a left and right side on the corresponding hemispheres of the brain. The left bulb process information that comes through the left nostril and the right bulb processes information that comes through the right nostril. This is unlike most of the other senses, for example where information from the left hand is processed in the right side of the brain.

From the olfactory bulb, the information passes into the area of the brain that comprises the limbic system that is involved with the regulation of emotion, the encoding of memory and learning. It is from this place in the brain that the odor goes to the thalamus and then to the orbitofrontal cortex where conscious smell perception occurs.

In recent years, odorant receptors have been found in all parts of our body. Essential oils can enter through these receptor sites and administer therapy at the cellular levels, including at the level of cellular memory and DNA.