Low Scent, Fragrances  in Mental Health Unit Design

This blog will outline the rationale for a low scent environment in Mental Health Units and offer recommendations with respect to the design of these environments.

 People admitted to Mental Health inpatient Units present with a wide range of mental health disorders including schizophrenia, Borderline Personality Disorder, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Autism. It is now understood that people with these diagnoses experience a higher rate of sensory sensitivities and other sensory processing challenges compared to the general population (Stromberg et al). 

 The prevalence of fragrance sensitivities were investigated in the United States, United kingdom, Australia and Sweden by Steinemann (2019) and results included:

·         75.8% of Autistics are sensitive to fragrances

·         26% of the general population report being diagnosed with asthma/asthma like conditions and 57.8% are also fragrance sensitive.