Behind Smelling Salts

  If you’ve ever watched powerlifters, athletes or even old movies where someone faints, you’ve probably seen smelling salts make an appearance. One quick whiff and suddenly, the person snaps to attention. But what exactly is happening inside the body to create that sudden jolt of alertness? 

What are smelling salts? 

Smelling salts are typically made of ammonium carbonate or diluted ammonia gas. When exposed to air usually by crushing a packet or opening a bottle they release ammonia vapor, which is extremely pungent And irritating.That irritation is the whole point. 

Ammonia irritates the nasal mucosa

When you inhale ammonia vapor it instantly irritates the mucous membranes inside the nose and upper airway. Ammonia is an alkaline chemical and even at low concentrations, it activates TRPA1 receptors a type of sensory nerve receptor that responds to noxious chemicals. I think of TRPA1 like the body’s built in alarm system for chemical irritants. 

Pain and irritation trigger reflexive inhalation 

Those irritated receptors send rapid signals up the trigeminal nerve one of the major cranial nerves responsible for facial sensation. The rain interprets this as “something intense is happening!” And reacts immediately. This triggers a strong inhalation reflex, sometimes called the “gasp reflex.” Why does this matter? Because that sudden inhalation brings in a rush of oxygen and jolts the body into a state of heightened alertness. 

The sympathetic nervous system activates 

The irritation-> nerve activation-> gasp reflex sequence sends a sudden burst of signals through the sympathetic nervous system( the fight or flight system).

Physiologically this leads to: 

-increased respiratory rate

Faster heart rate

Increased blood pressure and heightened alertness

A momentary boost in arousal and focus

Why do Athletes use smelling salts? 

Athletes especially powerlifters, football players, and hockey players use smelling salts before big lifts or moments requiring explosive performance. The benefits are not magical but they are real: 

- brief boost in alertness 

- increased focus before a strength based task

Strong mind muscles engagement due to heightened arousal

Are smelling salts safe?

Used occasionally and at a distance smelling salts are generally considered safe for healthy people bit they’re not recommended for frequent or long term use. 

Possible risk include: 

Burning or irritation of nasal passages 

Headaches

Aggravation of asthma or breathing disorders 

Dependence for performance (psychological) 

The bottom line 

Smelling salts “work” because ammonia irritates the nose triggering nerve reflexes that rapidly activate the body sympathetic nervous system. It’s a small chemical shock that makes the brain instantly alert. They’re not substitute for rest training, or medical care in the moment they’re incredibly effective at doing what they’re designed to do: wake the brain up with urgency. 

Sources:

    •    WebMD — “Smelling Salts: Benefits, Risks and Side Effects”  

    •    Medical Newstoday — “Smelling salts: Uses, safety, and side effects”  

    •    LiveScience — “How do smelling salts work?”  

    •    Britannica — “How Do Smelling Salts Work?”  

    •    Cleveland Clinic — “What Happens When You Inhale Smelling Salts, and Is It Safe?”  

    •    Scholarly article: “Smelling salts” (2006) — explains the ammonia-gas irritation mechanism and inhalation reflex.  

    •    Scholarly article on sensory irritation: “Trigeminal TRPs and the scent of pain” — describes how irritants (like ammonia) activate nerve endings in airway mucosa.  

    •    Recent review: “Effects of Ammonia Inhalants in Humans: A Review of the Current Literature Regarding the Benefits, Risks and Efficacy” (2025).  

Fluent in five, master of none

Growing up speaking five different languages sometimes felt like juggling too many things at once. I’d switch from language to another depending on who I was talking to, but I always wondered: do I actually know any of these languages well? Once I started learning about neuroscience and physiology, I realized that my brain has been physically shaped by the languages I speak. 

Research has shown that people who speak multiple languages have structural differences in certain brain areas involved in cognitive control, language, and attention. For example, people who speak multiple languages show increased gray-matter density in the left parietal cortex, which is closely tied to language learning and processing (Mechelli et al, 2004). To me, it’s interesting that every time I struggled to switch between languages, my brain was actually strengthening itself. Additionally, multilingual brains are constantly doing behind-the-scenes processing, activating one language when necessary while suppressing the others. This constant juggling strengthens a variety of skills like focusing, attention, and filtering distractions (Bialystok et al, 2012). 

One of the other things I’ve always noticed is how I feel like a slightly different person depending on which language I’m speaking. Neuroscientists and psychologists actually studied this phenomenon. Each language carries different emotional memories and cultural expectations, and switching languages activates different neural networks linked to those experiences. So it’s not that you become a different person, it’s more like a different side of your identity becomes highlighted depending on the language you’re using. 

After learning more about the physiology of multilingualism, my perspective has shifted. What I previously interpreted as a lack is actually a normal outcome of how a multilingual brain functions. It’s not a flaw, it’s just the way the system works. 

References

Bialystok, E., Craik, F. I. M., & Luk, G. (2012). Bilingualism: Consequences for mind and brain. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 16(4), 240–250. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2012.03.001

Mechelli, A., Crinion, J. T., Noppeney, U., O’Doherty, J., Ashburner, J., Frackowiak, R. S., & Price, C. J. (2004). Structural plasticity in the bilingual brain. Nature, 431(7010), 757. https://doi.org/10.1038/431757a

Sunlight, a cancer drug?

 

At the age of 18, I believed the healthiest choice was to avoid the sun almost entirely. I wore sunscreen everyday, reapplied it religiously, stayed in the shade;it felt responsible at the time. Years later, a routine blood test showed I had developed a vitamin D deficiency. Not long after, I came across this video on Youtube of a young Japanese woman whose situation was even more intense. She had taken sun protection to an extreme level, avoiding sunlight almost entirely, and eventually developed five spinal fractures due to severe low bone density. Doctors mentioned her bone density resembled that of someone with osteoporosis, despite her being 26. Her story didn’t surprise me. Without adequate sunlight, the body can’t properly synthesize vitamin D, which is crucial for bone health, immune function, and proper cell regulation. 

What surprised me the most was learning that vitamin D may play a role in lowering the risk of cancer. Researchers have found that higher blood levels of vitamin D are associated with reduced incidence of several cancers including breast, prostate, and colorectal cancers (Garland et al, 2006), This is due to vitamin D’s ability to reduce abnormal cell differentiation, promote apoptosis in certain malignant cells, and restrain the formation of new blood vessels that feed cancer (Feldman et al, 2014). 

This doesn’t mean unlimited sun exposure is harmless, as we already know excessive UV exposure is linked to skin cancer. However, other studies showed that regions with higher sunlight exposure tend to have lower rates of several cancers, and this is attributed to greater vitamin D synthesis (Grant et al, 2009). 

This made me rethink my relationship with the sun. Like most things in life, it’s about balance. People often talk about the dangers of too much sun, but we rarely talk about how too little sun can also affect our health in ways that aren’t obvious until later. 

References 

Garland, C. F., Garland, F. C., Gorham, E. D., Lipkin, M., Newmark, H., Mohr, S. B., & Holick, M. F. (2006). The role of vitamin D in cancer prevention. American Journal of Public Health, 96(2), 252–261. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2004.045260

Feldman, D., Krishnan, A. V., Swami, S., Giovannucci, E., & Feldman, B. J. (2014). The role of vitamin D in reducing cancer risk and progression. Nature Reviews Cancer, 14(5), 342–357. https://doi.org/10.1038/nrc3691

Grant, W. B., & Mohr, S. B. (2009). Ecological studies of ultraviolet B, vitamin D, and cancer since 2000. Anticancer Research, 29(9), 3495–3506.

I HAVE RINGWORM #StopTheStigma

Yes you read the title correctly this is not clickbait! When I facetimed my mom over Thanksgiving Break to check in and catch up, she noticed and made a comment about the rash on my left wrist, saying very bluntly, "Dude. You have ringworm." I laughed it off at first, explaining that it was simply from wearing my Fitbit for too long. But when I paused and reflected, I realized that this 'rash' had persisted for a week - way longer than the typical fitbit-induced red spot ever had. So I googled it - and the images were exactly like what I saw on my own body: 3 red coin-sized circles on my wrist. I was shocked and extremely disgusted at first, freaking out and questioning how I was even infected (was it from my new puppy? the cat who lives on campus I always pet? the mats at my gym? one of my roommates even??) But the more research I did, the more I realized that the severity and 'gross-ness' of ringworm is massively played up.

Ringworm is not even caused by worms! I was under the impression that some nasty parasitic creature was writhing around inside my system. But ringworm (tinea corporis) is actually caused by a fungus! A 2024 review in Clinical Dermatology explains how the fungi thrive in warm, moist environments (like the layer of skin underneath my fitbit!) and literally anyone can get it, no matter how hygienic you are! (I swear I am not gross)

The rash forms because the fungi locks itself into the superficial epidermis, triggering a localized inflammatory response. That's what causes those scary looking red circles. The good news? They are treated simply by applying a topical antifungal cream. I got mine off Amazon and started treatment immediately.

So yes, ringworm is visually alarming and unfortunately inconvenient, but way smaller of a deal than I ever realized. When I told my groupchat I had ringworm, I expected a dramatic reaction and to get some laughs, because who has ever even heard of such a thing! I thought I was having such a crazy, individual experience. But to my surprise, multiple of them have had it themselves! One from her guinea pig, one from his cat, and one girl never really figured out where she got it from! And get this - according to the WHO, anywhere from 20-25 percent of the world's population may have a ringworm infection at any given time! So we should stop the stigma (I say that half-jokingly because I genuinely still find so much humor in my current situation) but seriously, be careful what you touch, don't forget to wipe down your gym equipment, and maybe take off your fitbits/apple watches before bed :)

 

Sources:

 

AL-Khikani, Falah Hasan Obayes. Dermatophytosis a Worldwide Contiguous Fungal Infection: Growing Challenge and Few Solutions. Biomedical and Biotechnology Research Journal (BBRJ) 4(2):p 117-122, Apr–Jun 2020. | DOI: 10.4103/bbrj.bbrj_1_20

 

 

https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/ringworm-(tinea)

Match and ADHD: a caffeine-induced love story

I was diagnosed with ADHD when I was 12 and have always found that a little caffeine boost can really help sharpen my focus, especially if I am trying to get schoolwork done (I downed half a latte with 4 shots of espresso before sitting down to write this). Unfortunately, with the insane caffeine content of some energy drinks (200 up to a whopping 300mg in one can), I find myself getting the jitters if I drink too much at once. Last year during my internship with a culinary company, the dietician shared with me an interesting tidbit about matcha - it's apparently a better way to get a caffeine boost because it releases more slowly into the bloodstream, unlike the immediate, all-at-once rush that a coffee might induce. So as my love for matcha has flourished over the past few months, I decided to research this a bit more to actually understand the mechanisms and why matcha may be a better alternative!

In short, matcha (the green powder mixed with milk to create lattes) contains caffeine as well as L-theanine, an amino acid that impacts the alpha wave activity in our brains. A 2023 review in Nutrition Reviews linked caffeine and L-theanine with improved attention and working memory. Of course this would benefit someone like me with ADHD to help their brain function when completing tasks that require focusing for an extended period of time. L-theanine is especially impactful because it slows the stimulant effects of caffeine, eliminating the typical spike/crash pattern I often experience when I rely on coffees or energy drinks alone.

That slow release helps reduce that jittery feeling I mentioned, and can help sustain a more stable state of concentration and focus. It's like a study hack :)

 

Sources:

Camfield, D. A., Stough, C., Farrimond, J., & Scholey, A. (2014). Acute effects of tea constituents L-theanine, caffeine, and epigallocatechin gallate on cognitive function and mood. Nutrition Reviews, 72(8), 507–522.

 

Dietz, C., Dekker, M. (2017). Effect of green tea phytochemicals on mood and cognition. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 71(6), 532–539.

Am I training my puppy, or is he training me?

 I recently adopted a puppy who I am completely obsessed with, and he just so happens to be my favorite breed, an Australian shepherd. I am a huge fan of this breed for its intelligence, and it has always been my life dream to live in the beautiful state of Colorado with my very own Aussie and teach him tons of tricks. So to be here in Denver with my new pup Cashew and using every free moment I have to fulfill his every need (especially the breed's need for mental stimulation) is a challenge but also literally my dream come true.

As a biology student, I like to think I am in full control of his training, abiding by textbook techniques and classical conditioning. But I'm starting to think that Cashew is training me just as much as I'm training him.

I've trained cashew to instinctively grasp/hold his plush toys when he's seated and I present him one with the verbal cue "Who's your friend?" - that's an example of a trick I taught him. Initially I had to use food to motivate him to perform the task, but now he does it on cue with no reward needed (but still often given anyway because he is perfect and deserves it!)

But Cashew has trained me equally well. When I lay in my bed and he comes by, he cues me by sitting politely next to the bed and giving me an unwavering, dead-eye stare. At this point, I react immediately and pick him up to allow him to snuggle. It's positive reinforcement on both ends!

In our physiology lecture course, we talked about the 'bonding hormone' oxytocin - both dogs and humans experience a release of this hormone when a puppy gazes into a human's eyes. So every time Cashew gives puppy eyes, my own endocrine system is activated!

So officially, I am training Cashew with psychology. But unofficially, Cashew himself has harnessed the power of behavioral psych as well as human physiology, creating his very own human-training program and I seem to be the only student.

 

Sources: Pryor, K. (2019). Reaching the Animal Mind: Clicker Training and What It Teaches Us About All Animals. Scribner.

 

Nagasawa, M., Mitsui, S., En, S., Ohtani, N., Ohta, M., Sakuma, Y., ... & Kikusui, T. (2015). Oxytocin-gaze positive loop and the coevolution of human-dog bonds. Science, 348(6232), 333–336. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1261022

 

Type 3 Diabetes

 For the fourth blog post, I want to bring up an interesting topic that I have found from my externship at the diabetes trials in the Anschutz Medical Campus. And honestly, you all need a break from the sports talk. This extra blog post is catered around introducing a topic that I would like everyone who reads to consider moving forward in how they can view Alzheimer’s Disease. With my externship, we have considered Alzheimer’s Disease to be considered “Type 3 diabetes”. There are some similarities that can be found in diabetes and Alzheimer’s, believe it or not. And because of this, it allows to potentially draw some new medications that could help treat Alzheimer’s. Due to impaired glucose metabolism, the brain involves insulin resistance response. The insulin not being able to regulate glucose properly for energy demands may cause breakdown of important cells. Such breakdowns will lead to impaired cognitive function as memory is destroyed. This directly affects patients who have Alzheimer’s since they cannot think properly or perform regular everyday tasks.

As far as a therapeutic option, I am extremely hopeful we can find a solution to treating Alzheimer’s Disease. I like that there has been a biochemical comparison between insulin resistance and Alzheimer’s. The similarities in the risk factors as well as protein processing makes these pathways worth noting as targets for drugs to potentially treat Alzheimer’s. Really, we ought to be trying anything to find a solution to this disease. And we should also be looking into ways to prevent the transmission of developing Alzheimer’s. If type 2 diabetes makes one more prone to developing Alzheimer’s Disease, then more efforts should be administered to make lifestyle changes so that does not happen. I would like to learn more about Alzheimer’s and I will be monitoring how these trials go in the Spring semester. If I see anything substantial, I will share this with Dr. Campisi and others. Any signs of improvement for people in this condition will be groundbreaking, so I am excited for the possibility of being a part of that.

de la Monte, S. M., & Wands, J. R. (2008). Alzheimer’s disease is type 3 diabetes: Evidence reviewed. Journal of Diabetes Science and Technology, 2(6), 1104–1110.

González, A., Calfío, C., Churruca, M., & Maccioni, R. B. (2022). Glucose metabolism and Alzheimer’s disease: Evidence for a potential diabetes type 3. Alzheimer’s Research & Therapy, 14, 56.