‘Smell a Memory’

JWT Singapore and global fragrance house Givaudan have created pioneering ‘Smell a Memory’ kits to help people suffering from dementia. This unique innovation harnesses the power of scent to evoke emotional memories among Alzheimer’s and dementia patients.

Alzheimer’s and memory loss caused by dementia affect 35.6 million people worldwide. “Our sense of smell is one of our most visceral instincts. It has an instant and powerful connection to memories, especially emotional ones,” said Juhi Kalia, JWT Singapore ECD. “We thought, ‘What if we can use smell to bring evoke memories and emotions in these patients?”

JWT worked with Givaudan, the fragrance specialist which partners with prestige, personal and home care brands worldwide. Together they created bespoke ‘Smell a Memory’ kits. The kits are personalized and custom-created for individual patients based on each patient’s family history, ethnicity, age and personal stories. 

Givaudan’s perfumers, in consultation with therapists and rehabilitation experts, tailor-made and bottled unique smells such as “Bedtime Stories”, “Mom’s Cooking”, “Prayer”, “School Days” and more to provoke engagement through experiential smells. The scents used ingredients relevant to Singapore, including herbs and spices from everyday Singaporean dishes, Hainanese coffee, and incense used in local temples and other scents that reminded people of school, holidays and work life.

“We wanted the smells in the kits to have a narrative quality. The idea was to evoke emotional memories, not just factual ones. Scents that could open the floodgates to a story or a certain time in their lives and all the feelings associated with that memory,” says Kalia.

Working with medical staff at Soo’s Nursing Home and another care facility in Singapore, the team tested the power of scent in therapy sessions. The ‘Smell a Memory’ kits proved to be an incredibly powerful tool, sparking memories in some patients, and stimulating strong emotions in others. While regular aromas have been used to uplift moods, this is perhaps the first time complex fragrances have been created to evoke emotional memories in such a medical context.

“One of the key goals of therapy for Dementia patients is to draw them out and help them re-engage with the world and with loved ones. Over time, these patients become withdrawn and lose interest in food, activities and the people around them. A tool like this, that can awaken their senses and emotions, is critical to their emotional and physical health,” said Andrew Soo, Manager from Soo’s Nursing home.

A number of the patients, who are often listless, withdrawn and uncommunicative, became excited and lively after smelling the kits, engaging in animated conversations with family members and therapists. That, in turn, created an equally emotional experience for family members.

“I believe it will help in her recovery of a certain part of her memory of us,” said Mavis Han, the daughter of 85-year-old Han Yoke Kin, who took part in the programme. “I don’t want her to forget us.”

The Singapore project was so successful that Givaudan now plans to extend the programme to other regions, as part of their sustainability program. JWT and Givaudan Singapore are also in the process of organizing further trials at two of Singapore’s largest hospitals.

“We are really breaking new ground here,” said David Boyd, Global Fragrance Director, Givaudan. “This is a practical, hands-on, usable tool. And the response has just been outstanding.”