Supercharge Brainpower WITH ESSENTIAL OILS

How to get a 226% boost in thinking— plus a bevy of other health perks

- REBECCA HAYNES

We all experience bouts of forgetfulness (Where did I leave my phone?), which often trigger concern about our memory and even dementia. But astounding research from UC Irvine shows that you can dramatically improve memory, focus and brainpower by inhaling the scents of specific essential oils.

The researchers used diffusers to expose healthy subjects, ages 60 to 85, to one of seven essential oils (orange, peppermint, lavender, rose, eucalyptus, lemon or rosemary) for 2 hours as they slept. After six months, those who had been exposed to fullstrength oils-which rotated on a repeating basis, using a different oil each night-experienced improved mental functions, including memory, perception, reasoning, decision-making and language comprehension by a whopping 226%! How? MRIS revealed that oil exposure strengthened a brain pathway (the left uncinate fasciculus) that plays a role in functions responsible for thinking, emotions and memory formation, but becomes less active as we age.

And inhaling the scents while you sleep makes the process easy, says lead study author Cynthia Woo, project scientist. She notes that you can expect the same results by turning on a diffuser and inhaling the scents of these oils (on the same rotating basis) for 2 hours during the day. More good news: These brain-boosting essential oils can enhance health in so many more ways! Read on to see just how they can help you feel your best.

Orange essential oil

Rising summer temperatures can drain your mental energy. Thankfully, research published in the journal Molecules found that orange essential oil boasts 26 aromatic compounds that stimulate the sympathetic nervous system and increase the ability of brain cells to soak up and use glucose. The result? The brain's ability to quickly process information is supercharged!