Scent salts, made of ammonium carbonate and perfume, were traditionally used to revive fainting individuals but are now used by athletes and coaches. However, the ingredients can be dangerous and prolonged exposure should be avoided. The salts should be used in small quantities and in well-ventilated areas.
Scent salts are a combination of ammonium carbonate and perfume. They were traditionally used to revive people from fainting spells and are often associated with frail 19th century women. Some athletes use them before competition as an aid, or coaches may use them to revive an athlete who has been injured. Medically speaking, the smell of salts will definitely make someone more alert, but it may not be as helpful as it was once said. In fact, some of the ingredients in them are actually potentially quite dangerous.
Older names for odorous salts include volatile salt and hartshorn salt. The antlers of the male deer, or stag, were a common source of ammonia before chemical synthesis allowed scientists to produce salts in the laboratory. The name presumably arose because the fumes of the mixture were intended for inhalation. Novels set in a certain period seem to involve an alarming amount of volatile salt wafting under the nostrils of delicately sensitive women.
The basis of this substance is ammonium carbonate, a salt with a white crystalline structure. When ammonium carbonate is mixed with water, in the case of “aromatic spirits of ammonia,” or perfume, the reaction creates fumes rising from the salts. When placed under someone’s nose, the fumes irritate the mucous membranes in the nose, throat and lungs, causing the body to breathe more rapidly. Mixing the perfume with the ammonium carbonate could have produced quite an interesting smell, which is why the scent salts were kept tightly bottled up when not needed.
The quickening of breathing brought about by the use of these salts will make someone more alert and could potentially revive someone from a faint. It can also improve headaches, which can sometimes benefit from increased oxygen to the brain. Headaches and fainting were the two treatments for which scented salts were regularly recommended. However, ammonia fumes are not very good for the body and prolonged exposure should be avoided.
Ammonia fumes can be toxic if allowed to accumulate. Therefore, scented salts should only be used in small quantities and ideally in a well-ventilated area or outdoors. When not in use, salts should be sealed so that vapors cannot escape. Carefully discard old salts, as ammonia is extremely toxic to fish.
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