What it Means to be Fragrance-Free

The little-known sensitivity that KPU is acknowledging

In most situations, wearing scented products is considered common courtesy. Many assume that putting on sweet-smelling deodorant, shampoos or perfume will be appreciated by those around them, but the rising popularity of “fragrance-free” events and goods is beginning to dispel that myth.

Technically, there is no unanimous definition of the term “fragrance-free,” but it is most regularly explained as the lack of chemicals or substances intended to mask a natural smell. Because of this loose definition, many products that are marketed as fragrance-free can still trigger reactions in those sensitive to them by withholding trace amounts of fragrances used during production.

Luckily for British Columbians, Canadian companies are mandated to list all of the ingredients—including fragrances—on their products so that their customers can feel confident that their health will not be compromised by using them. Because fragrance-free labeled products can have an odour without being artificially scented, it can be very difficult to discern their authenticity, making that law crucial to their well-being.

“Many who have scent sensitivities can experience a variety of symptoms that may even require hospitalization,” says Kimberley McMartin, Board Organizer for the Kwantlen Public Interest Research Group. “Many fragrances and scents can trigger allergy and asthma attacks in certain individuals, especially within the 30 per cent of Canadians who already react to scents without pre-existing lung conditions.”

Some of the common symptoms reported include headaches and migraines, nausea, dizziness, fatigue, anxiety, numbness, upper respiratory symptoms, depression, sinus congestion, skin irradiation and loss of appetite. These reactions act as proof of environmental sensitivity, according to the Canadian Human Rights Commission, making them an official chronic medical condition.

For anyone whose sensitivities might trigger such reactions, attending public events could be potentially dangerous. In fact, McMartin herself reacts to fragrances and believes that her exposure to them has “greatly hindered” her access to events and classes at KPU.

The CHRC recommends that “fragrance-free and chemical avoidance policies” be developed and enforced by institutions, as well as “undertaking educational programs to increase voluntary compliance with such policies, minimizing chemical use and purchasing less toxic products, and notifying employees and clients in advance of construction, re-modelling and cleaning activities.”

With those goals in mind, the university has announced its public support of fragrance-free events and education on what scent sensitivity is. A “scent awareness” page on its website states that, “In consideration of the difficulties that exposure to scented products can cause, the University encourages faculty, staff, students and visitors to avoid the use of scented personal care products.”

Organizations under the university have started to pay attention to the needs of those with scent sensitivities as well. KPIRG and the Students of Colour Collective’s event educating the public about the history and meaning of genocide—Genocide Across Space and Time—is publicly listed as a fragrance-free occasion. McMartin explains that they “hope to create a more inclusive environment where more people can access the conference,” by asking their participants “to limit their use of such products and be mindful of what they use in such spaces.”

“We hope to be more inclusive in the future by adding this within our accessibility repertoire,” says McMartin. “It is quite easily within our power to make our shared space more inclusive and accessible. Why wouldn’t we?”