Regularity of Human Body Temperature Change Induced by Various Aromatic Smokes

ABSTRACT: Aromatherapy is a widely used clinical complementary therapy. Incense therapy, as one of the primary methods of aromatherapy, releases volatile aromatic compounds that rapidly interact with the human body. To explore its potential mechanisms, we collected 123 common natural aromatherapy fragrances and employed infrared thermography to record human surface temperature changes after smoke inhalation. The results showed that most incense samples could induce localized temperature increases, exhibiting eight stable and distinct heating patterns. These patterns show a phenomenological correspondence with the eight extra meridians described in traditional Chinese medicine. This phenomenon suggests that natural incense smoke may induce meridian-specific warming effects, which may provide thermographic evidence for the meridian hypothesis while also offering new perspectives for modern aromatherapy research.