Do You Smell That?
Earlier this year, I wrote about dogs and their incredible sense of smell. That conversation was brought on by something I watched regarding dogs and their ability to smell cancer. It’s all possible due to the Jacobson Organ. But theirs is not the strongest
Humans have it as well. In fact, it is present in all animals. And all I could think was, “I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made…” Psalm 139:14 ESV
Jacobson’s organ, also called vomeronasal organ, is a patch of sensory cells within the main nasal chamber that detects heavy moisture-borne odor particles. This organ was named for its discoverer, Danish anatomist Ludvig Levin Jacobson, in 1811. (source: britannica.com)
According to everydayhealth.com people can detect at least one trillion distinct scents. Scientists thought that the human nose could only detect about 10,000 different smells, but that information was based on a study from 1927 and very outdated. More recently, researchers from Rockefeller University tested people’s sense of smell by using different mixtures of odor molecules. The results, published in the journal Science, showed that the nose can smell at least one trillion distinct scents.
Here is another interesting fact, scent cells are renewed every 30 to 60 days. The sense of smell is the only cranial nerve, nerves that emerge from the brain and control bodily functions including eye movement, hearing, taste, and vision that can regenerate.
According to a 2012 study published in the journal Psychological Science you can smell fear and disgust through sweat, and then you can experience the same emotions! And, women have a better sense of smell than men.
Dogs have nearly 44 times more scent cells than humans. Humans have five to six million odor-detecting cells as compared to dogs that have 220 million cells.
Each human has their own distinct odor. Like fingerprints, every person has their own distinct odor.
And all I can think is, “For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well.” Psalm 139:13-14 ESV
You think you are special? You are!
“…God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. Genesis 1:27 ESV
God made you and you are wonderfully complex!
We did not evolve from apes that evolved from slime. We were created and designed with a purpose; formed from the dust of the earth with God’s breath of life breathed into our nostrils. That is such an intimate picture of our Creator God!
“Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness;…” Genesis 1:26 NKJV
Each animal species was also created by God, from the ground.
“Out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air,…” Genesis 2:19 NKJV
A recent study has found that the African elephant has the strongest sense of smell in the animal kingdom. Scientists have found that they have the largest number of genes associated with the sense of smell, around five times as many as humans and twice as many as dogs. An elephant’s nostrils, located at the tip of the long trunk, have been known to detect water sources up to 12 miles away. (Source: worldatlas.com)
According to guideposts.org, you smell with your brain, not your nose. That is incredible! Sensory cells called chemoreceptors in the nose detect the smell and then send electrical impulses to the brain. The brain then interprets the electrical patterns as specific odors—what we recognize as smell.
No two people smell things the same way because each of us has scent blind spots, meaning specific odors we cannot pick up on.
Scents can cue memories. Most of your scent memories, however, come from the first decade of your life, unlike visual or other sensorial memory types.
A fragrance you perceive as pleasant can have a profoundly positive effect on your mood. So if you love vanilla, keeping a little scented oil on your desk can help lift you when you’re down. The same goes for citrus, jasmine, or any other scent that makes you feel contented. (Source: guideposts.org)
Yes, we are wonderfully made by a God that loves us deeply. He knows us, He created us.
“For the Lord will not forsake His people, for His great name’s sake, because it has pleased the Lord to make you His people.” 1 Samuel 12:22 NKJV
by Jeanette Stark – Wednesday, November 2, 2022