People with depression may struggle to recall specific memories about their lives — for instance, a dinner party with friends or a visit to their favorite coffee shop. Now, a small trial suggests that"scent therapy" could help people with depression unlock those difficult-to-access autobiographical memories .
"The olfactory system is the only sensory system that has a direct, superhighway access to the memory centers of the brain and the emotional centers of the brain," Michael Leon, a professor emeritus of neurobiology and behavior at the University of California, Irvine, who wasn’t involved with the new study, told NBC News."All the other senses have to take the side streets to get there.
This memory bias keeps the person entrenched in negative thinking patterns that are difficult to break. For instance, it can make it more difficult for a person to debunk negative, overgeneralized thoughts about themselves, such as"I am a failure."