For an assisted living senior center to thrive, managers and owners must understand the link between the scent of the center and the physical and mental wellbeing of its residents. A welcoming scent can bring all kinds of benefits to residents, and in this article, we'll explore what some of those benefits are and how scent can positively affect residents' experiences.
Before jumping into that, let’s get some context on how powerful scent can be in affecting human emotions.
How Scent Affects Us
Humans are very susceptible to scent and we can all recognize scents that remind us of people, places, or times in our lives that were significant. In fact, particular scents can stay with us for life. Whether it’s the smell of a fresh bouquet of roses or the scent of our favorite chocolate cake, scents can create powerful emotions in us all and can conjure up all sorts of feelings.
Not only do scents affect emotion, but they also go a long way in determining our first impressions of a place. As an owner or manager of an assisted living senior center, it’s vital to create a strong first impression for potential clientele and their families. Ask yourself, wouldn’t you want your loved ones living in a place that triggers positive emotions and memories through the use favored scents?
A pleasant scent will help to create a relaxed, home-like atmosphere for residents and visitors alike, and provide a strong first impression to those visiting your center.
What Are The Benefits Of Scents To Residents?
There’s a variety of problems that seniors face in assisted living senior centers, these can include isolation or anxiety for the future. A new resident may have been removed from family members or friends and feelings of isolation and loneliness can be common.
Implementing scents into your senior center can offer many benefits and help those residents suffering from feelings of isolation or anxiety. Certain scents are known for calming the mind and creating a serene environment. Scents like chamomile, lavender, and citrus have been shown to help reduce these feelings of anxiety, and any scent that helps to reduce unpleasant feelings will help residents feel safe and secure.
There are some interesting stats that show just how powerful scent can be to human health. According to the UK based charity: the Alzheimers Society, around 80% of residents in assisted living senior center’s suffer from some form of dementia or severe memory issues. In a separate study, researchers discovered that when the aroma of cinnamon was introduced to a number of nursing homes, significant improvements in cognitive functions were observed in those diagnosed with Alzheimers.
That being said, having scents present in your center will bring great benefits for your seniors and luckily with today's advancements there are scent machines on the market that can pump the pleasant smell of cinnamon throughout your entire center. The smell of peppermint has also been shown to enhance alertness, focus, concentration and the accuracy of memory, so if cinnamon is not the ideal scent for your center, there are plenty of other options to choose from when you’re deciding which scent will work best.
Wellbeing Is The Priority
The wellness and wellbeing of residents should be a top priority for any manager or owner of any assisted living senior center and scent is a simple way to improve your resident's day-to-day life and boost the overall appeal of the center as a whole.
Creating a center full of healthy, happy residents, can start with the use of a scent diffuser machine from the leader in commercial and residential scenting, Aroma360. Your center’s reputation will speak for itself. A pleasant scent is one way of making sure that residents, visitors, and staff alike enjoy your assisted living senior center and family members or friends will rest well knowing that their loved one is well taken care of.
