Are edible perfumes the future of International Perfumery?

Once upon a time the ancient Egyptians and other peoples of the Far East used to burn herbs to evoke scents and aromas. It was the first form of perfuming. Later perfumes became solid and than liquid as we knew till recently.

Today researchers are looking for new forms of perfuming, of capturing scents and aromas.

Remember when I first posted about Le Whif? Developed by a Harvard professor, David Edwards, who was researching in the medical field on aerosols and inhalation, and in collaboration with students, designers, engineers and entrepreneurs from Le Laboratoire, a center for art and design in Paris, Le Whif was launched as a device for eating chocolate by breathing. This was the first seed for the development of edible perfumes.

Beneo and a Bulgarian candy company called Alpi have also teamed up to introduce to the European market a new way of perfuming, from inside out, as fragrance is incorporated as the candy is consumed, and than released through the skin pores. 

We can't deny that violet candies and rose candies are in the market for ages. But they only brought the aroma-taste of these flowers. The scent was captured in the mouth and that was it. Today, the products are being developed just like the edible cosmetics, that bring beauty from inside the body.

Swallowable Parfum  is a new product that has been being developed by Harvard biologist Sheref Mansy and body architect Lucy McRae consisting in a swallowable perfume pill that is digested to excrete fragrance through out  the skin surface by perspiration. Tiny droplets will rest on the skin releasing unique fragrances. The skin, as Lucy McRae describes, becomes a platform, an atomizer, and will give a new definition to it.

Swallowable Parfum takes advantage of natural enzymes produced in our body to release fragrant molecules from larger structures.
Truth is that we have al experienced eating certain types of food and smelling odors through transpiration. I once heard from a Japanese that western babies "stink" of sour milk. I would not mind if my sweat would smell like 31 Rue de Cambon by Chanel!

Fuwarinka, a Japanese company launched in the market the Fuwarinka Scented Gum, the chewable perfume. It is said to bring the fragrance of roses and peaches to the entire body and not just for the mouth, once the gum is chewed. The fragrance is excreted thought the pores, leaving the skin perfumed and also bringing healing benefits to our health.


My questions are concerning the performance of these new technologies. For how long will we be able to smell the fragrance on the skin? What if we want to stop the process? With sprayed fragrances it is very easy - washing off with an instant shower. But what if I swallow the pill and somehow it gives me a major headache only a few minutes after it starts to be excreted? 

Another question raised: is my poop going to smell like perfumes one day? If so, I won't mind a fresh scented Sicilian lemon fragrant poop! I think these researchers could also focus in perfuming human excrements and gas. I would not mind my child's farts if they smelled like Guerlain's Mitsouko! Can you imagine perfume pills being swallowed to  release and transform our poop into fragrant toilet surprises? They could team up with air freshener companies!

Watch the sensual video SWALLOWABLE.
Credits: Director / Vision: Lucy McRae Synthetic Biologist: Sharef Mansy Parfumer: Mona di Orio