A new study discovered that cigarettes are far less desirable to smokers when associated with something horribly smelly, like rotting fish, according to Science of Us, especially when the suggestive stink is introduced while we're asleep.
About 66 smokers who hoped to quit slept over in a sleep lab. One group was hit with the smell of cigarettes paired with rotten fish or egg smell during sleep. A second group was exposed to the odors, but only one smell at a time. A third group was given the cigarette and rotten fish mixture while awake.
All the smokers recorded how many cigarettes they smoked that week and compared the number to the cigarettes smoked before the sleep study. Those who were exposed to the cigarette and nasty combination while asleep smoked fewer cigarettes after the sleep study than the other groups, despite not having a memory of the horrific smells they endured.
According to the study's conclusion, the adverse reaction affect lasted for a few days after just one night of olfactory therapy.
