In what it’s calling an “aroma ad,” home goods and fragrance corporation Bath & Body Works is pumping vanilla and fresh pine scent from diffusers attached to steel girders in the tunnels connecting the subway beneath Grand Central Station in New York City.
As The Associated Press reports, commuters’ olfactory senses are being assaulted by the “Fresh Balsam” scent as part of a promotion campaign in collaboration with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA).
https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/doi/10.1289/ehp.1104052
“Fragrances, particularly terpenes such as limonene, are associated with secondary chemical reactions in indoor air and can contribute to the production of formaldehyde, glycol ethers, ultrafine particles, and secondary organic aerosols (Nazaroff and Weschler 2004; Singer et al. 2006). Exposure to fragrances has been associated with a range of health effects, including allergic contact dermatitis, asthma and asthmatic exacerbations, headaches, and mucosal symptoms (Heydorn et al. 2003; Kumar et al. 1995; Steinemann 2009).”