Our sense of smell plays a huge role in our lives. The main human response that is connected to smell is the change of behavior. It is believed that burning incense will reduce stress and anxiety, and even stimulate creativity. The burning of incense has been around since the beginning of ancient civilization. The practice of burning incense in order to release an aroma that is primarily believed to be used for religious practices have psychoactive benefits as well— this process is called aromatherapy.
Incense smoke contains a variety of ingredients such as cinnamon, frankincense, myrrh, and many more. With this in mind, it would probably be a good idea to burn incense every day especially to mask a hidden horrid growing smell in your house. But you need to be careful as to where you burn your incense smoke inside your house.
The questions that most aromatherapy-incense-lovers would often ask is that “Will burning incense trigger your home’s fire alarm?” Yes, it may trigger your fire alarm. The only way for you not to accidentally trigger your fire alarm is to avoid burning a ton of incense at once and avoid placing them near your fire alarms. For this and other potential fire accidents, the US Fire Administration requires for the most part every household to install fire alarms at every bedroom, your basement, your kitchen, and even outside your bedrooms. The administration even suggests having it all interconnected, when one goes off, all of it must go off.
Benefits of Burning Incense
You may have suddenly formed a bad opinion on burning incense sticks at home. But you have to consider the benefits of incense before you start throwing away your incense sticks given by your parents during Christmas. Here is a list of other benefits you get from burning incense beside the ones that have already been mentioned.
Natural Air Freshener
Incense, which is known to be made from all-natural materials and essential oils, can be used to freshen up the room to remove bad smells. Some incense would have it smell stick to furniture and clothes that would give you 24 hours of new and fresher room air. Amazon currently is selling six popular incense smell with a total of 120 sticks for a small price. Tom’s Incense Six Most Popular Hem Incense scents is an Amazon’s Choice product that has a rating of 4.5/5.0 with 2,745 reviews. If you purchase their package, they would even offer a free burner too. To purchase this product, click here.
Aid in Sleeping
Believe it or not, incense scents may help aid you in sleeping. It’s popularly known that scents such as lavender, chamomile, sage, and cedarwood help with sleeping problems. Scents such as lavender act as an anxiolytic and as a sedative that increases relaxation. So burning a couple of lavender-scented incense to help you sleep is probably a good idea.
Blood Circulation
Frankincense is a popular aromatic resin obtained from the Boswellia tree which can be found in countries like India, the continent of Africa, and the Middle East. This aroma resin contains what we call Boswellic acid. This acid is known for its anti-inflammatory effects that aids in blood circulation. Amazon featured a product by Yajna that sells incense sticks that are made from 100% frankincense and myrrh that are 500 sticks per pack. The sticks burn for up to 20 to 30 minutes but leave the aroma for about 24 hours. To purchase this product on amazon and start helping your blood circulation, click here.
Meditation
Meditation has its roots in the religion of Buddhism. It is the practice of an individual’s mindfulness and focuses to achieve a mental and emotionally stable state. Meditation is wildly known to help relieve stress, aids in falling asleep, allows you to remain calm, and many more. Meditation has always been done alongside the calming aroma of incense, some may even believe that the only way to meditate is with the burning smell of incense for it adds to the relative state you are about to go to when you meditate.
Help with Depression
The National Institute of Health said that major depressive disorders will be the leading cause of disability in the United States for people ages 15-44. A study by researchers at the John Hopkins University and Hebrew University in Jerusalem concluded that religious leaders who have been using methods such as burning frankincense is good for the soul. They have seen in their study that this method is good for the brain, which in turn may help in aiding depression or other mental disorders in the future. To scan through this study published at Science Daily, click here.
The Downside of Incense
A study released by the United Kingdom National Health Service (NHS) talked about the possibility of incense smoke being more harmful than tobacco smoke or cigarettes. The study only included 4 incense scents and one tobacco cigarette; they were checking to see if it will trigger any DNA mutation on an animal cell and if it’s toxic. Nevertheless, the study indicated that incense smoke may cause DNA mutation and is toxic to the animal cell, which in turn will be toxic to humans.
The head researcher of this study, on the other hand, is from tobacco companies so initially trusting this research from individuals who aim to might prove the positive sides of tobacco is extremely suspicious. Even so, we still need to be considerate of the fact of “too much of a good thing, is a bad thing.” Meaning too much incense might probably give negative effects on the human body.
To read through this article online, click here to proceed to the official website of the NHS.
In Case of a Fire, Be Prepared!
Now that you read about the health benefits of burins incense at home, you must also be aware of the guidelines provided by the US Fire Administration to prevent home fires from happening— especially if caused by burning incense. There are a ton of fire guidelines provided by the Fire Administration, from pictographs to videos to blog posts. To check out these preventive fire measures, click here to proceed to their official website.
Tips to Prevent Fires
The American Red Cross laid out seven (7) important tips to consider in order to prevent a fire from happening at home.
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- Install the right number of smoke alarms.
- Teach children what are smoke alarms and what it sounds like.
- Ensure that all household members know two possible fire escapes.
- Establish a family emergency communications plan.
- Practice escaping from your home at least twice per year.
- Make sure every household member knows how to call 9-1-1.
- Teach the method of STOP, DROP, & ROLL.
The Right Fire Alarms For You
On Amazon, there are tons of fire alarms you can choose from that will follow the US Fire Administration guidelines and American Red Cross guidelines in case of home fires.
First Alert BRK Hardwired Smoke Detector
First Alert is a company that has been providing fire safety products since 1958. They come in packs of 3, 6, and 12 on amazon which is certified Amazon’s Choice products that have a rating of 4.6/5.0 with 7,759 reviews. It even comes in a series of styles that have a 10-year battery backup. To purchase this trusted product on amazon, click here.
Kidde Smoke Detector Alarm
Kidde is also a trusted brand that has been producing fire alarms for over a century in the US. It has an easy installation process with a practice button to help you teach your children at home what a possible fire alarm sounds like in case of a real-life fire scenario. It’s a certified Amazon’s Choice product with a 4.6/5.0 rating on amazon and 2893 reviews. Buy this product now by clicking here.
Final Thoughts
The next time you consider lighting up your incense at home, always consider the safety measures first. Yes, burning incense may help with your anxiety, sleep, depression, and is considered to be a stress reliever. But nothing will save you from the stress of a possible home fire at home caused by burning incense.
Here is a video from the American Red Cross, that would surely add to the importance of fire safety at home.
