With the rise in negative reviews about purchases for incense candles that emit a good scent, an analysis showed that the spread of the new coronavirus (COVID-19) infection has continued.
The inability to smell well is one of the typical symptoms of COVID-19. It is explained that when the olfactory paralysis occurred in the initial stage of the infection, it became difficult to smell good, which led to a negative reaction to the product.
According to the Guardian on the 13th (local time), negative reviews for the representative US scented candle brand “Yankee Candle” increased on social networking services (SNS) in the fall of 2020, when Corona 19 spread to the United States. United States and the United Kingdom. Even earlier this year, when the Omicron mutation swept the world, dissatisfied reviews of the product such as “It doesn’t smell the same as before” increased.
Scientists say negative reviews on incense candles are a harbinger of a rise in COVID-19. Dr. Jorge Cavalero, an American medical scientist and founder of Coders, a private organization that researches COVID-19, said on his SNS on the 9th: “Yankee Candle’s poor product rating means Corona 19 will rise rapidly.”
Nick Beauchamp, a professor at Northeastern University in the United States, confirmed the correlation between the increase in the number of COVID-19 cases and reviews of Yankee Candle purchases on Amazon through an article published in the Journal of the American Academy of Artificial Intelligence at May.
As a result of reviewing 10,000 Yankee Candle purchase reviews, it was found that for every 100,000 new confirmed cases, the number of “odorless” purchases increased by 0.25%. Reviews of products complaining about “Vera Wang” perfume, a perfume brand popular with women, also increased with the spread of Corona 19.
However, recently this rule has not been respected. As a result of Professor Beau Champ’s analysis of Amazon Yankee Candle shopping reviews over the past four months, the number of negative shopping reviews saying “there is no smell” has increased, but the number of new confirmed cases of crown19 decreased over the same period.
Professor Beauchamp said: “The negative reviews about buying incense candles and the increase in the number of COVID-19 cases have coincided for three years, but are now starting to diverge. It looks like it has had an impact.” he has declared. He added: “Interestingly, many people have learned that the inability to smell scented candles is an early symptom of COVID-19.”
