We may sometimes see a particular color and feel at ease without knowing why, while another color may catch our attention and stir a feeling of discomfort. Sometimes, even a passing scent in a particular place can instantly take us back to an old memory: someone we loved, a moment that made us happy, or even an experience we wish we could forget.
So, do colors and scents have an effect on the brain, or are our feelings towards them shaped by the memories associated with them? And why might the same color make one person feel comfortable while causing another to feel tense?
Dr Hussein Darwish, a brain, neurosurgery and spine surgeon, explains this relationship by noting that the brain is constantly interacting with its surroundings, and that our past experiences can influence how we respond to what we see and smell.
We may sometimes assume that a particular colour has the same effect on everyone, but the relationship between colour and our emotions may be more closely tied to our personal experiences and memories.
Dr Darwish explains that the brain connects what we see with the situations we experience, meaning that the same color can have a different meaning for different people. “The truth is that our brain is constantly communicating,” he says.
Dr Darwish uses the color blue as an example, explaining that associating it with a happy memory may make a person like the color and feel optimistic about it. If the color was present during an occasion associated with someone we love or with a success we achieved, it may become associated with those positive feelings.
But if the color was associated with a negative experience, the result may be completely different, and the person may come to feel pessimistic about it. Darwish says: “If I have a memory associated with someone I love or with a particular success, and the color blue was present on that occasion, I may like blue and feel optimistic about it. But if I have a bad experience associated with the color blue, I may feel pessimistic about it.”
These associations are not limited to colors. The brain can recall memories triggered by different sensory stimuli. A particular scent may be enough to transport a person back to a moment or period from an earlier stage of their life.
Dr Darwish points out that the scent itself is not necessarily pleasant or unpleasant; rather, the memory associated with it may determine how we feel about it. Therefore, the source of the feeling may not be the color or scent itself, but the connection the brain has formed between that sensory stimulus and a past experience.
Beyond personal experiences and memories, Dr Darwish believes that dark and intense colours may create a greater sense of discomfort than lighter colours.
This highlights the importance of how we respond to our surroundings, as our feelings towards colours are closely linked to the way our brains have become accustomed to perceiving and processing them.
Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter
