Abstract
The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between mental state and brain activity in response to odors in the environment. The mental state of 20 healthy adults was estimated using the Profile of Mood States (POMS) scale. The subjects were placed in a room, which was individually filled with vanillin, Mainichi-Koh (Japanese incense), skatol, and distilled water (control) odors, and their electroencephalograms (EEGs) were recorded while performing an auditory oddball task in the room. Both phase-locked and non-phase-locked event-related desynchronization/synchronization (ERD/ERS) of theta frequency EEG activity (4–8 Hz) were averaged for the time interval 0–500 ms. Statistical analysis was performed using multiple ANOVA, with cluster, odor, and group divided by score on the POMS subscale. The ERS activity in response to vanillin was significantly higher in the phase-locked component in the lower group of the POMS depression subscale and in the non-phase-locked component in the lower group of the POMS tension-anxiety subscale compared with both the control odor and the higher group of each POMS subscale. These results suggest that biological reactions related to odor stimulus were associated with moderately depressed and anxious mental states in healthy people.
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