Guilt-Free Indulgences

A friend recently shared this Weight Watchers article about using beauty products that smell and taste like food. They recommend it as a calorie-free way to indulge in "dessert," with several reviewers talking about whether the products made them crave the real thing or satisfied their cravings.

I found this interesting because many of the new seasonal and custom fragrances I've been adding have been desserts...Sugar & Spice and Gingerbread at Christmas time, Champagne & Strawberries and Chocolate Truffle for Valentine's Day, and the new Cupcake fragrance. I shared some cupcake hand cream with a friend and she took it to work with her, where all of her coworkers proceeded to comment on how "yummy" it smelled. Some of them said it made them hungry. I use the cupcake balm every day and it doesn't have that effect on me. It seems like along with most things related to fragrance, this is very personal.

Kayla Fioravanti, an aromatherapist, formulator, and co-founder of Essential Wholesale, has an amazing series about aromatherapy at her blog. In one post she talks about the physiology of smell, in relation to the way essential oils work to affect the body. She says, "Smells trigger a memory response. Scent memories can trigger changes in body temperature, appetite, stress level and sexual arousal." I know that certain fragrances certainly do affect my appetite, though I haven't personally noticed this with beauty products. Should we be looking to our hand cream or sugar scrub to decrease our appetite for certain foods? Do more people experience an INCREASE in appetite? And is this happening even when we aren't aware of it?

What do you think? Do you find that using food fragranced and flavored products increases your appetite for those things, or does it satisfy your cravings in a guilt-free way? Does this influence the types of fragrances you choose to wear? I'd love to know what you think! Please leave your comments below.