Scents: Not So Innocent
Scents and Fragrances are filled with synthetic chemical ingredients that disrupt the endocrine system, compromises the neurological system, and increase your toxic load. While they are silent and, sometimes, subtle, their impact is not.
Synthetic fragrances and scents are everywhere—especially this time of year. Homes fill with candles meant to evoke nostalgia, cars hang onto artificial “freshness,” and beauty products promise alluring aromas. But beneath these seemingly harmless scents lies an industry built on unregulated chemicals, hidden ingredients, and compounds that have never been tested for long-term human safety. The rise in fragrances correlates with the rise in symptoms, chronic illness, and mystery conditions.
The Hidden Reality: “Fragrance” Isn’t Just One Ingredient
The word “fragrance” on a label can legally contain hundreds, and even thousands, of undisclosed chemicals. It’s considered a trade secret—so companies don’t have to tell you what’s in it. Many of these chemicals fall into three categories:
Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals (EDCs) that interfere with hormones responsible for metabolism, fertility, energy, mood, and stress regulation.
Neurotoxins that can impact cognitive function, focus, neurological health, and emotional regulation.
Respiratory Irritants that inflame the lungs and contribute to chronic inflammation and fatigue.
Toxic Heavy Metals impair neurotransmitter function, contribute to the body’s toxic load, and perpetuate symptoms, conditions, and illnesss.
Some of the most common hidden chemicals include phthalates (linked to reproductive harm and metabolic disruption), synthetic musks (which accumulate in the body over time), and solvents that irritate the nervous system. These all accumulate in the body over time, increasing your body’s toxic load while compromising the body’s ability to cleanse and heal. These chemicals harm the brain, age the skin and body, compromise the function and health of our organs, accelerate disease, and exacerbate symptoms and conditions.
Why This Matters for Women’s Health
Women are uniquely sensitive to fragrance chemicals because of the fluctuations of our hormone cycle:
The endocrine system is intricately tied to menstrual health, adrenal function, thyroid balance, and overall vitality.
Many women already experience imbalances—irregular cycles, PMS, heavy cycles, low energy, inflammation, etc. —which these chemicals can exacerbate.
Fragrances create an added detoxification load on the liver, a key organ for cleansing and regulating hormones.
When your body is constantly filtering synthetic scents, it redirects energy away from healing, hormone balance, and cellular regeneration. Over time, this can contribute to symptoms like:
Fatigue and brain fog
Mood swings or anxiety
Irregular periods or worsened PMS
Headaches or migraines
Skin issues like acne or eczema
Poor sleep quality
Your Nervous System Is Also Smelling Everything
Scents aren’t just absorbed through the skin—they're inhaled. And what you inhale reaches the brain within seconds. Synthetic fragrances can overstimulate the nervous system, activate stress pathways, and reduce your ability to enter calm, restorative states. If you’ve ever felt a headache, tension, dizziness, or irritability around strong smells… this is why. Your body is incredibly wise. It’s communicating with you. Chemical sensitivities are rising as our exposure to chemicals and fragrances increases.
The Marketing Myth: Clean, Cozy, and “Natural”
Many products labeled “clean,” “fresh,” “eco,” “green,” or “natural” still contain synthetic fragrance—because fragrance terms don’t have to meet any safety or transparency standards in the U.S. Natural fragrance is an elusive term that evokes a belief that it’s safe and natural, however this could not be further from the truth. The truth is that the industry is allowed to label a fragrance natural if it contains at least one single essential oil in the mix of industrial synthetic chemicals. And that essential oil may not be ‘pure’ and contain petroleum byproducts…
A candle marketed as “soy” or “coconut wax” may still contain:
Petroleum-derived fragrances
Chemical-laden wicks
Dyes and stabilizers that release toxins when burned, that you breathe in
A perfume marketed as “non-toxic” may still contain hormone-disrupting fixatives. This is why education is empowerment. The more you know, the more you can prepare. Once you understand the truth, you can make aligned and empowered choices that support—not sabotage—your wellness.
Sources of Fragrance Exposure:
Scented Shampoo, Conditioner, Lotion, Cosmetics, Makeup, Laundry Detergent, Fabric Softener, Dryer Sheets, Hand Soap, Cleaning Products, Deodorant, Scented Candles, Plug-in and aerosol air fresheners, Perfume, Cologne and Aftershave, Incense, Scent Diffusers…
The Empowering Part: Your Home Can Become a Sanctuary
My intention isn’t to instill fear, rather it’s to activate awareness. Small shifts in the environment you live in every day create profound changes in your health, energy, hormones, and wellbeing. This is the foundation of lifestyle design: refining and curating your home to be a true wellness sanctuary. While you can’t always control the external environments, you can control your spaces and environments.
Here are simple shifts to begin transforming your space:
Choose Pure Certified Therapeutic Grades essential oils rather than perfumes.
Opt for beeswax candles and avoid scented candles.
Replace synthetic air fresheners with diffusers using pure essential oils.
Use food grade hydrogen peroxide cleaning solution as odor-neutralizing sanitizing cleaning alternative.
Accent your spaces with living plants as they are nature’s air purifiers.
These simple yet powerful shifts compound over time. They promote health and
A New Way to Relate to Scent
Scent is powerful. It influences mood, memory, desire, energy, and emotion. But it should be something that promotes health, not hinders it. When you choose natural scents, your body begins to heal. Your breath deepens. You reconnect to your primal intelligence. Your environment becomes not just “healthier,” but more aligned with who you are becoming —radiantly healthy, empowered, and on purpose.
