Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 29, 2026
A Lateralized Odor Learning Model in Neonatal Rats for Dissecting Neural Circuitry Underpinning Memory Formation
Published on: August 18, 2014
Influence of odorants on preterm and term infants during neonatal intensive care: Overview and perspectives
Cornelia Hinz1, Axel Heep1,2, Torsten Plösch1
1Department of Human Medicine, Carl von Ossietzky Universitat Oldenburg, Oldenburg, Germany.
Insights
Infants, especially preterm infants, respond to smells, which can aid feeding, reduce stress, and stabilize breathing. More research is needed on paternal and other odors to optimize infant care.
Area of Science:
- Neonatal care
- Sensory neuroscience
- Developmental psychology
Background:
- Olfactory cues are vital for infant development, influencing bonding and breastfeeding.
- Hospital environments for preterm (PI) and term (TI) infants limit natural olfactory input and introduce clinical odors.
- The impact of the olfactory environment on infant well-being is understudied.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review infant responses to olfactory signals.
- To explore the potential of olfactory stimulation in clinical settings.
- To identify gaps in knowledge regarding olfactory influences on infant health.
Main Methods:
- Review of existing studies on olfactory responses in preterm and term infants.
- Analysis of how olfactory stimulation affects feeding, stress, pain, and respiration.
- Discussion of maternal vs. paternal odor research.
Main Results:
- Preterm and term infants show sensitive and distinct responses to olfactory stimuli, particularly maternal odors.
- Olfactory stimulation can positively impact infant feeding, stress, pain management, and breathing stability.
- Research on paternal odors and other natural/artificial odorants is limited.
Conclusions:
- Olfactory stimulation holds promise for improving neonatal care, especially for preterm infants.
- Further research is needed on diverse olfactory stimuli and objective analysis for optimized strategies.
- Understanding the olfactory environment is crucial for supporting infant physical and mental health.
Abstract:
Olfactory cues play a crucial role in peri- and postnatal development and are thought to be involved in basic processes, like parent-child bonding or the establishment of the breastfeeding relationship. These processes are highly important for the physical and mental health of the developing child. However, little attention has been given to monitoring and maintaining the olfactory environment of preterm (PI) and term (TI) infants in the hospital. This environment differs fundamentally from that of healthy neonates because the patients are exposed to odors from clinical interventions while the natural olfactory input is limited. In this article, we summarize examples of how PI and TI respond to olfactory signals and how olfactory stimulation can positively influence feeding, stress, and pain management or even stabilize breathing. Although different studies have investigated the positive effects of maternal odors and demonstrated that PI and TI respond highly sensitively and distinctly to them, hardly any comparable studies exist for paternal odors. Also, the knowledge about the role of other natural or artificial odorants is very sparse. Future work should focus on investigating the role of these odorants and on optimizing olfactory stimulation strategies using objective odor analysis techniques.
