Feeling blue? Get yourself a mood-changing gardeniaIt might feel increasingly cold and grey as we slide into autumn,but one species is in its full glory factual now: the blowsy ivory flowers of gardenia (Gardenia jasminoides). Yet this exotic houseplant has much more to offer than mere visual appeal. Its creamy-white petals house structures that generate sweetly scented compounds which not only fill a room with their rich, jasmine-like perfume, and but according to recent trials may also hold a profound effect on your mood.
Research on mice cells at Heinrich Heine University and Ruhr-Universität in Germany found that two of the compounds responsible for the scent of gardenia flowers could hold a similar mechanism to commonly prescribed barbituates and anaesthetics such as propofol. They may even be of a similar strength under laboratory conditions.
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Source: theguardian.com