Researchers have found in a survey that for many people, the sense of smell is less important than vision, hearing and other physical characteristics, but this sense of smell is important in many ways.
Half of the women surveyed reported that they would choose to keep their hair longer than their sense of smell.
But the sense of smell is one of the first sensory systems to be linked to your mental health, memory and other mental functions.
The sense of smell is directly linked to both your memory and emotions. This connection was first discovered by American psychologist Donald Laird in 1935.
Many smells are first detected by specialized nerve cells inside your nose. These cells travel to the smell center of your brain, called the olfactory bulb, at the top of your nose.
From the olfactory bulb, these cells then connect directly to the limbic system of the brain. This includes the amygdala, where emotions are generated, and the hippocampus, where memories are stored.
On the other hand, other senses, such as vision and hearing, have no direct connection to the limbic system.
