Rosemary Oil: The Scent that Can Boost Your Memory
Trying to memorise a long speech? Preparing for a presentation at work? Studying for an upcoming exam? If you want to increase your chance of succeeding in tasks that involve memory skills, you may want to place a bottle of rosemary oil on your table and let its mild yet memory-enhancing aroma be absorbed into your system and into your brain, a new study suggests.
Researchers at the University of Northumbria at Newcastle recruited 66 healthy adults and randomly assigned them to either a rosemary scented room or an unscented room. Participants were asked to take a test for 30 minutes, like completing a quiz or word puzzle. What they are not aware of is that the test was designed to distract them from the actual task which is to recall important details like moving from one task to another at a pre-specified time. Participants were rated based on how prompt their response was in remembering to complete the tasks given to them.
The findings, which were presented at the British Psychological Society’s annual conference in Harrogate, showed that the participants in the scented room performed better in the memory tasks than those in the unscented room.
What about the scent?
According to the researchers, the memory-enhancing effects of rosemary scent is probably due to the eucalyptol, a compound present in rosemary oil which has been shown to play an important role in the formation of memories in animal models. The lead author, Mark Moss, PhD, head of the department of psychology at Northumbria University, said that if the compound is present in the blood, it could travel to the brain and act on memory systems. In their study, they found that the participants who stayed in the rosemary-scented room had higher eucalyptol levels than those who stayed in the room with no smell.
More Therapeutic Effects of Rosemary
Rosemary is a woody, perennial herb that has fragrant, evergreen and needle-like leaves, and flowers that are pink, yellow or blue in colour. It is widely used in cooking especially in Mediterranean dishes. But even before its culinary properties have been discovered, rosemary has already been used as a medicine.
It has long been believed that rosemary has beneficial effects on memory but scientific explanations for this have only arrived lately. Rosemary is also used to treat muscle spasm, promote blood flow, stimulate hair growth, and increase menstrual flow. In many parts of Europe, rosemary leaves are used to aid indigestion or dyspepsia. Lab tests also show that rosemary has antioxidants that eliminate free radicals in the body.
There are many ways to improve your mental and physical health using rosemary. For example, you can make rosemary-infused oil and use it on salad or pasta. You can also make a refreshing tea out of it. Simply steep bruised rosemary leaves in hot water for 5 minutes, and it’s done! You may even combine it with other herbal teas. Dried rosemary leaves can be used as food seasoning. Top crushed dried leaves on your pizza before baking, and sprinkle some in your omelette and to just any other dish you want! It’s flavourful and healthy!
Dear Readers,
Have you tried using rosemary as a medicine? Can you suggest other ways to reap the healing effects of rosemary?
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