There are only two ways to proceed when arriving at a gas station. Catch air like you find in the middle of a garden full of roses or try to breathe just enough to survive, but without retaining breath. smell of gasoline. It is a reality that what for many is a wonderful aroma for others is a pestilential stench. In this case there are only whites or blacks, there are no grays. But why do some people love the smell of gasoline and others hate it?
Surely you have asked yourself that question at some point, regardless of which group you are from. And the truth is that scientists have done it too. Basically, they have wondered how it could be that a smell linked to something so toxic may be attractive to some people. At the moment there is no conclusive answer, but there is there are two hypotheses about.
The first points to the nostalgia. For reasons that we will now see, the smell of gasoline could unconsciously awaken many pleasant memories. Instead, the second hypothesis addresses something much more visceral: the addictive power of one of the ingredients in gasoline. Its about benzene and it triggers certain reactions in the brain that we also experience with tobacco, alcohol, cocaine, chocolate or sex. Some are more dangerous than others, but they all act on something known as reward systems.
The nostalgia of the smell of gasoline
In 1913, Marcel Proust public In Search of Lost Timethe first of the volumes of his work By Swann’s Way. Right at the beginning of the book, its protagonist cooks some muffin, simply for the pleasure of tasting them. However, when he dips them in a cup of tea, the resulting aroma unlocks a childhood memory of his so strong that the author spends more than 3,000 pages describing it.
This is why it is known as “Proust madeleine” to the phenomenon by which smell It is the meaning that brings us our most intense memories. This, beyond literature, has a scientific explanation. And smell is the only sense that does not pass through the thalamus. This structure is a kind of control zonewhere the information coming from the senses is subjected to a first analysis, before traveling to the brain and transforming into the sensations that we perceive.
Information from the eyes, tongue, ears or skin reaches the thalamus, but not from the nose, since the sense of smell has a direct line to the brain. This occurs through a bundle of nerves, known as olfactory bulbwhich is especially concentrated in regions close to the amygdala and the hippocampus, two regions involved in both managing emotions and fixing memories.
As a result, it is very common for a smell to bring back memories. More than any other sensation. Sometimes memories that We didn’t even know we had.
And that’s what some scientists think could happen to us with the smell of gasoline. If we have beautiful childhood memories, in which our parents stopped to refuel on the way to the beach, or we played in the garage while they did a car repair, it is possible that we unlocked those evocations almost without realizing it. We just feel good.
benzene addiction
On the other hand there is the addictive part of the smell of gasoline. This is made up of many ingredients, but the one that interests us the most in this case is benzene. It is a hydrocarbon that is added to gasoline to give it more octane. That is, in this way, the combustion process is optimizedsince the engine cylinder can be compressed more, without premature detonation.
Benzene has a mixture of pungent but almost sweet smell, which in the past was added to aftershave and shower products. It was a perfect perfume. Unfortunately, it was later discovered that it is highly carcinogenicTherefore, its use in this type of products was prohibited. It is very volatile, so it is what we used to smell of gasoline. And yes, we also inhale it, but it is not dangerous, much less if it is only when it is time to refuel.
Although it was used in perfumes on its own, the truth is that the smell of gasoline is not the most pleasant in the world. But benzene has another quality that explains everything. And when it evaporates and we inhale it, it acts on the brain reward systems. This is a part of the brain that is responsible for releasing large amounts of dopamine to certain stimuli. It is a hormone that generates a great sensation of pleasure, so we will want to repeat those stimuli. And that is what is sought evolutionarily. For example, sex activates reward systems. We feel pleasure, we want to do it again and we promote the perpetuation of the human species. It also happens with high-calorie foods, like chocolate. Thus, we obtain energy to keep our body active.
The problem is that there are substances that they do not bring any benefit, like cocaine, which also act on reward systems. Any stimulus that promotes this release of dopamine is likely to cause addictions, since if it is repeated over and over again we can become resistant to dopamine and need more and more. Not all people are equally sensitive. There are some more likely than others to develop an addiction. And that may be what happens with the smell of gasoline.
Benzene is known to act on reward systems, but not everyone is equally sensitive. The dopamine rush is not the same. And that, along with the fact that we may not have pleasant memories associated with fuel, may be the reason why some people do not like this smell. Therein lies the key to whether we are in black or white, but that we never place ourselves within the gray scale.