Scents on a plane? Eau no!
On the Spot by Times Travel Editor Catharine Hamm
[To read more On The Spot columns, click here.]
Question: Airlines need to tell passengers not to bathe in their stinky perfume. I am not allergic to perfume, but it is torture having to sit near heavy perfume wearers all through a flight. It’s not just women; men are just as bad about using too much. Also, some deodorants are far too strong. Is there any way to get the word out to people?
–Carol Suggitt, Surrey, Canada
Answer: Based on science and sociology alone, Suggitt’s chances of stopping what she considers an airborne invasion stink.
But not completely.
Some businesses, schools, even hospitals have instituted fragrance-free policies because they are concerned about reactions to odors. Some people say they suffer from multiple chemical sensitivity, or MCS, whose symptoms can range from a slight headache to terrible allergic reactions. Some scientists, we should note, do not believe in MCS.
Although the policies I read from such institutions as Portland State University in Oregon, Cecil College in Maryland and Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston don’t outright ban products that have an odor, the language (”discourage,” “refrain,” “as a courtesy”) in these policies makes it clear that heavy cologne users don’t pass the sniff test. In other words, leave the Axe alone.
Despite the movement in some quarters away from fragrances, Suggitt is bumping up against society itself.
“If most of society perceives certain smells and tastes as pleasurable or marketable, how are you going to change society to eliminate all smells and taste?” asks Dr. Bradley Marple, professor and vice chairman of the department of otolaryngology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas.
If you look at the number of fragrance ads during the holidays, you realize how powerful a force that marketing machine is, which could explain why I can’t get Matthew McConaughey, I mean Dolce & Gabbana, out of my mind.
And no doubt about it: The mind does play an important role — and in ways beyond our primitive reaction to odors.
“When we are stressed, we can overreact to smell, fueling our irritability and getting into a negative loop — ‘How dare this person do this to me!’ ” said Debbie Mandel, author of “Addicted to Stress.”
Stress and flying — now there’s a concept.
The only problem now is what we do to make everyone happy. Marple says that there’s no pill and that Suggitt may need to “hold her nose and get on with life.” Mandel says that “by reframing the experience with kindness and compassion, we can become resilient, adapt and let it go.”
And I say that it’s yet again another matter of recognizing that being polite means striving not to offend by word or deed, even if we didn’t know we were. By seeking not to offend with body odor, perhaps we have swung the pendulum too far the other way. Is it time to dial it down? Makes scents.
[Graphic: Diane Bigda / For The Los Angeles Times]
31 Comments on “Scents on a plane? Eau no!”
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January 8th, 2009 at 3:14 pm
I do not have MCS, but strong fragrances give me a headache and sore throat. It is the chemicals in the fragrances that cause the problem, so holding your nose won’t help. On our last flight home from Europe I was beside a woman wearing heavy perfume. Half way thru the flight she applied a lot more perfume and I had to move to a different seat. I felt assaulted by the chemicals coming from her. I would like people who wear strong fragrances to understand that not everyone can tolerate them, and when they are going to be sitting close to others they should go lightly on the fragrances or consider not using them.
January 8th, 2009 at 4:16 pm
I have Multiple Chemical Sensitivity and I just wanted to note that it is not an allergy. It is a physical response to the toxic chemicals in perfume and other every day products (including those without a smell), not unlike (some would argue exactly like) a response to poisoning. It may come as a surprise to some, but the chemicals used in commercial perfume are synthetic and completely unregulated by the government. Manufacturers can put whatever chemical they like in perfume and fragrances (like air fresheners, laundry products, etc) and not disclose any of it. For example, studies show that phthalates, the stuff that makes perfume last a long time, is conclusively linked to dramatic changes in male sexual characteristics when exposure took place in utero. That’s why some doctors advise pregnant women not to use perfume when pregnant. So please note that MCS response is not an allergy and not caused by odors per se, it’s triggered by low level doses of the toxic chemicals in the products. Exactly how those responses are triggered has not yet been conclusively studied, in fact study as whole on the effects of low level exposure to toxic chemicals in every day products has not been thoroughly conducted at all.
January 8th, 2009 at 4:56 pm
Susie’s right. It’s not the aromas of things that give people headaches or completely disable them, it’s the neuro-toxic, endocrine disrupting, respiratory irritants and carcinogenic petro-chemicals and solvents in manufactured scents/fragrances these days. And the contents are unregulated, untested, trade secrets, so we can’t see how close to gasoline they really are. You think 2nd (and 3rd) hand tobacco smoke is harmful to health?
Fragrance chemicals affect more systems of our body than tobacco chemicals do.
January 8th, 2009 at 8:32 pm
Most annoying of all is when the “duty-free” cart rolls down the aisle and the women who just bought perfume from it apparently cannot wait to splash it on. For this reason, I always dread international flights that sell duty-free on board. And, of course, the attendants never bother to ask them to refrain from perfuming the already meager supply of air.
January 8th, 2009 at 8:48 pm
I wish I’d get stuck sitting next to someone wearing too much perfume. I always get stuck next to the guy who hasn’t bathed in a week.
Perhaps those applying copious amounts of fragrance are trying to cover up other unpleasant odors on the airplane. Between stinky and sweaty passengers, babies needing a diaper change, and weird food odors, airplanes are often quite unpleasant to the nose.
January 8th, 2009 at 8:58 pm
It’s enough now with all of you people that think everyone else has to deal with your complaints. FLYING - they herd us like cattle, we have no rights if a problem occurs with the trip. Perfume?! You have to be kidding me! How about the guy/girl close enough to smell every time they flatulate?! Yeah flatulate. It’s common among people especially upon arrival when cabin pressure is being changed prior to arrival. how about the people that stretch out across the seats with feet (no shoes) on the bulkhead or next to your lap. OH - I really get a kick out of the folks that walk to and use the toilet with only socks on. HMM. …and you think the floors are clean. They’re usually wet. I don’t want to hear from you winers. GROW UP!
January 8th, 2009 at 9:55 pm
To joe flyer, what you describe are irritations and issues of common courtesy regarding personal space, not a health issue. While I wouldn’t enjoy the “fragrant” release by a passenger, it is (like it or not) a bodily function that may not be controllable in those situations, and while the stench is unpleasant, it is not harmful - nature would never do this. Of course, common courtesy should prevail, and the offender should recuse him/herself to the lavatory; however, use of perfumes is voluntary with potent and lingering effects. For those who are sensitive to headaches (migraines and the like) - and I can tell that you are not - perfumes can cause great pain and discomfort. I can confidently say that while perfumes have given me headaches, gas has not. Oh, and for someone who is complaining about other people complaining, you sure have a lot of complaints of your own.
January 8th, 2009 at 10:11 pm
“Flatulate” is not a word. It is a common assumption that it is the verb form of the adjective “flatulent”.
Just say fart.
I was stuck next to a lady for two hours on a packed plane who’d just come from a Tony Robbins seminar . I dare anyone to try to top that.
January 8th, 2009 at 10:36 pm
It’s not about complaining. It’s about being able to breathe. I have had to give up $60 concert seats, leave expensive dinners at fancy restaurants, and even stand during most of an international flight due to an overly perfumed person invading my space. My throat literally swells and closes up when assaulted with the toxic fumes of the synthetic binders that perfumes are made from. My only choice is to remove myself from the offending perfumer wearer. Being able to breathe clean air should be a right, not a preference. And educating others about the impact of wearing strong scents should not be considered complaining.
January 9th, 2009 at 2:27 am
As a smoker I’m pissed off that I can’t smoke on a plane and for that matter many airports do not even have smoking rooms. However I deal with it. Now there’s the perfume police? I put on perfume after I shower and dress, then the taxi takes me to the airport. When I clear TSA I put on MORE perfume on purpose. It’s my way of pissing off the anti-smoking nannies. If they would have a smoking section on the airplanes like they did in the good old days, and INCREASE the fresh air inside the cabin, I will reduce my perfume. Loud talkers and screaming babies/toddlers annoy me but no one does anything to shut them up. People also have body odor, bad breath, pass gas and reek of garlic but no one does anything about that. I will continue to wear my perfume LOUD and PROUD and too bad for anyone that doesn’t like it!
January 9th, 2009 at 2:59 am
A diversity of opinion is healthy but only when based upon actual facts. In fact, the ingredients in most synthetic fragrances cause injury to both users and secondary consumers, forced to inhale. It is no different from smoking in public, except that people have legal protections from second hand smoke.
According to one 2006 study, the most common fragrance chemical is present in nearly everyone’s body and also causes a moderate reduction in lung function - to normal, healthy people. It isn’t about allergies or sensitivities, although fragrance chemicals are triggers for allergic dermatitis, asthma and migraines (affecting millions of unhappy travelers who paid good money for their tickets too!).
See this article in the journal, Indoor Environment Connections -
http://www.ieconnections.com/archive/feb_08/feb_08.htm#article3
January 9th, 2009 at 4:48 am
Had the problem at work - too much perfume from a co-worker who didn’t understand when asked to “tone” it down - spray the air freshener so strong they can’t breathe - they got the message. Be creative and stay within required guidelines for airline flights. Just remember, the right to have too much scent works both ways!
January 9th, 2009 at 5:00 am
I have MCS, and I get physically nauseated by heavy perfumes, to the point of throwing up. I’ve been lucky enough never to be seated next to one of these clowns on an airplane. But if I ever do, I will ask politely to be reseated. If that doesn’t work, then I will simply throw up on the person wearing the perfume. If they are so inconsiderate as to make me physically ill, they’ve got it coming.
January 9th, 2009 at 6:56 am
Let’s call perfume what it really is: BO of the worse kind. While sweat does have a nasty odor - it doesn’t harm you. But the BO from fragrance (almost invariably not natural but from Aldehydes that are very close in composition to gasoline - yep gasoline - is a harmful BODY ODOR. Though the American Chemical Society does its best to convince doctors that harm from fragrance is “in people’s heads” - real science is not on their side. Tens and thousands of studies show how low levels of dangerous chemicals do a lot of harm. Just sit over a can of gasoline and inhale the fumes - then let the docs influenced by ACS tell you your illness is all in your head. Tell those parents of kids who have died by the thousands from “huffing” or smelling gasoline that their death was psychosomatic”. Lab tests show that even rats exposed to perfumes die when exposed to fragrance. Fragrance - which years ago did actually come from plant oil - is now petroleum and totally unregulated and protected by what’s called the “secret recipe act”. The facts are that fragrance consists of 96% petrol-chemicals. At least 15 of those are on the hazardous waste disposal list. - I say stop wearing and defending your right to your body odor stench from your expensive petroleum perfume!
January 9th, 2009 at 6:59 am
The toxicity of modern fragrance formulations is no joke. Enough already with the cute phrases about scents and sense and pictures of people with clothespins on their noses. This type of coverage reminds me of the nervous giggling of 8th graders during “facts of life” classes. Grow up, indeed.
And the “Is it real or is it Memorex?” jab at MCS not being “believable” is 20 years behind the times as it is recognized by the Social Security Administration, HUD and the Americans with Disabilities Act, among others. For a list of published peer-reviewed articles documenting the “realness” of MCS, go to http://www.chemicalsensitivityfoundation.org.
This condition is also not rare and the numbers of people who have it are growing by leaps and bounds. A national survey found that 11.2% of respondents reported increased sensitivities to common chemicals and 2.5% had been medically diagnosed with MCS. Perhaps even more relevant here is that this same survey found that 31.1% of respondents said that sitting next to someone who was wearing a scented product was “irritating” and 17.6% said they were actually made sick from exposures to scented “air fresheners.” So going light or without perfume on planes and other public places is a good idea because it improves air quality and reduces potential harm to others as well as yourself. There is already enough stress and toxic exposures associated with flying. No need to add to it.
January 9th, 2009 at 7:24 am
I’ve flown well over a million miles in the past twenty five years. I enjoy flying but it frequently amazes me how inconsiderate some passenger are of those around them. For example, on the topic of strong scents, when a fellow passenger decides to use finger nail polish remover and then apply new polish - talk about a toxic smell that permeates the plane!!! I would defintely encourage/support a rule against it.
January 9th, 2009 at 8:51 am
Let’s not forget the recent study showing depressed people cannot detect how much fragrance they are laying on. Stressed about flying? Depressed about your life lately?? Spritz! Spritz!
January 9th, 2009 at 9:18 am
@Fed Up,
Yea the good old days, I really sympathize with you’re inconvenience of not being able to light up a cancer stick in an enclosed air space a couple of thousand feet in the air. Recycled air FRESHENS up nicely when you add the nicotine flavor.
January 9th, 2009 at 10:07 am
i am a frequent flier, and there are many more people with bo than people with too much perfume. just sit next to somebody who hasn’t showered or doesn’t use deodorant cross country or an international flight and you’ll be praying for somebody with perfume!
January 9th, 2009 at 10:23 am
How about some common sense here?
Conservatively speaking, about one in five people is likely to have an adverse response to fragrance worn by others–this includes people with allergies, asthma, sensitivities, and chronic severe headaches. People over 65, those with heart disease, those who are on cancer chemotherapy, and those who are pregnant, can also react badly to fragrance exposures.
Airplane cabins are small and full of people.
It follows that those who arrive heavily scented, and/or apply fragrance during the flight, are likely to set off reactions in about 20 percent of the people in that small, shared space.
People who are experiencing symptoms can also be irritable, and hard to be around.
Thus a ripple effect can spread from fragrance users, to reacting people, to those around them. It’s not hard to see how a few hard-core fragrance users can make a flight even more unpleasant for a whole lot of people who are already crowded together and uncomfortable.
I can’t help but wonder if some of those screaming toddlers and crying babies aren’t protesting about how bad they feel.
Fragrance users should make an effort to distinguish between their intentions in wearing fragrance and the actual outcome of their fragrance use. The intended “Don’t I smell fabulous?” message can actually turn out to say “I’m self-absorbed and inconsiderate!”
Louise Kosta
author, Fragrance and Health
Human Ecology Action League, Inc.
January 9th, 2009 at 10:25 am
I’ve never had this problem, but then again I’m not a whiny brat who thinks the whole world revolves around my wants and needs and should accomodate my scent-sitivies. I feel especially sorry for the hypochondriacs who have talked themselves into having a fake allergy to everyone and everything in the world.
January 9th, 2009 at 10:40 am
Mr. Fedup… having smoking sections on a plane made about as much sense as having a pissing section in the pool.
Glad we’re done with that foolishness.
Now as for your aggressiveness in wearing perfume to “get even”… I’d consider therapy for your anger issues. Sounds like you may have taken the “Hai Karate” ads seriously.
January 9th, 2009 at 10:53 am
If you have problems with smells, then what are you doing on an airplane?
Jetfuel, heavy duty air fragrances and cleaners, plastic interior that is constantly outgassing, increased radiation exposure at altitude, smelly people, microwaved food odors, etc, etc.
And some are worried about perfume. Too funny!
January 9th, 2009 at 11:00 am
Farting…
Eat slower, chew your food well, no liquid with you food, don’t mix starch and protein, don’t eat fruits and sugars with your meal… and consider some digestive enzymes if you don’t digest well. Excess Farting can be a sign of a more serious health problem. Its like when your car is not tuned up properly or has ring troubles and smokes. And if you must fart …yes do turn on your air blower or go to the WC… After all this is one more form of methane gas that can be minimized… for a greener and better smelling planet.
January 9th, 2009 at 11:17 am
Aldehydes… have been used in perfumes since the late 1800’s by … Guerlain then Chanel..#5 another form of Formaldehyde… some people have a sensitivity to any sort of fragrance and this will manifest as itchy throat,headache, itching of the inner ear, fuzziness of thinking, dizziness, and fatigue and/or asthmatic attack….and you may be subjecting someone to all the above just so you may waft about in your “signature” fragrance. The perfumers of the world have indoctrinated you into thinking that this might be a good thing. Please consider that the smell of unadulterated air is always preferable.
January 10th, 2009 at 1:58 am
I am very sensitive to chemical perFUMES, and repeated exposure worsens the immune reponse. Natural, plant-derived scents are not an issue, but the unfortunate truth is that almost all commercially produced perfumes, sprays, deodorants, etc. contain chemical-based scents. They are toxic - to the environment and to humans. Those who wear them get desensitized to the smell and then must apply more and more to be able to smell it themselves, while leaving those around them gagging in their wake. I really think that most people just aren’t aware of what is in that perfume they’re slathering on - I mean, would they go down to the funeral parlor and ask to have some formaldehyde to spritz on? Of course not, yet they’re willing and unknowingly doing it with their perfumes. People need to become more aware of the products they use every day.
January 13th, 2009 at 3:57 am
I haven’t noticed a lot of passengers wearing too much perfume, and I’m a frequent flier. In my experience, the worst strong perfume ‘offenders’ are often the cabin crew, who are presumably trying to insulate themselves from the bad smells which build up during a flight! I’ve had to put up with plenty of BO, farting, and halitosis on flights, and the crew deal with that every day. So I feel for them, but I do wish they’d tone down the scent.
I enjoy wearing perfume. But I don’t wear a lot of it, or the really strong stuff. And I leave it off for flights, the theatre, and eating out. It’s just common courtesy. If you find that a fellow passenger is invading your space or upsetting you physically with strong perfume, what on earth is wrong with just politely saying so? They probably have no idea. They could go wash it off, and perhaps they will think twice before applying so much for a flight next time!
Some people will always overdo it. I personally favour politely requesting them to use less, over the ‘ban it all!!’ brigade. Sometimes it seems that we’ve lost the art of negotiation and tolerance, instead, there is overreaction. There are rights on both sides to consider.
Incidentally, a lot of the synthetics in scents are nature-identical, and others are used because natural ingredients such as oak-moss and limonel are gradually being banned due to supposed allergenic or irritant effect. Yet, limonel appears naturally in citrus peel, and you’d get much more on you just by peeling an orange, than you would from wearing a whole bottle of perfume. Talk about ooverreaction……
@Fed Up - seriously?!?
I never ceased to be amazed at how childish tobacco addicts can be when access to their drug of choice is restricted. You do realise that some of the passengers your LOUD and PROUD scent use annoys, are likely to be your fellow fix-deprived smokers, don’t you?
January 13th, 2009 at 4:44 pm
Hand lotion. Really? You can’t wait until de-boarding to apply it? I have flown local and international and the application of hand lotion when the wheels touch down is just silly. But I would take that any day over the person who insists on reclining their seat into your space during meal time. I have politely asked people to sit up during this time and they look at me as if I’m mean to even suggest it! And then they ignore me. If you fly you just have to remember, the flight will be over in 1 to 18 hours, but “clueless” lasts forever.
January 14th, 2009 at 1:25 am
@Linda,
I agree. I use unscented handcream on flights, as I find that even perfume-loving me is oversensitive to smells on a plane. I do find I need the stuff in flight, plane air is very drying. But I have no idea why everyone starts using it when the wheels touch down.
As for the seats, the cabin crew tell people reclining during meals to put their seats up. So if the clueless reclining passenger in front ignores you, just call a steward. I do!
January 14th, 2009 at 4:35 pm
And while we are at it stop the parfume on Yom Kippur. It is indeed torture on plane, in church and certainly when ill in a hospital.
March 6th, 2009 at 7:19 pm
It’s not whining. It’s a frustrating problem being discusssed. My reactions to the room deoderizes all over the public areas of my apartment building are so bad that I have had three near misses with my car and my month’s work record resembles an LSD spiderweb scramble. IT IS NEURO TOXIC.
I will now not use my car until I get a diagnosis and begin to really face this thing. We all already avoid and accomodate all we can. It’s not a matter of our convenience or displeasure. IT MAKES US ILL.