/oss/taxonomy/term/649/all en /oss/article/health-you-asked/what-are-smelling-salts <p>Victorian ladies fainted with alarming frequency. They had been characterized as the weaker sex and had become conditioned to fulfil the role. A little shock, such as a glance at a passage in Lady Chatterly's Lover, and they would collapse in a swoon. The cry then went up for the smelling salts! Someone would quickly oblige, open a little bottle and wave it under the victim's nose. Recovery, at least in the movies, was almost immediate. So what was this remarkable substance that resuscitated the victim so effectively?</p> Tue, 06 Nov 2012 17:07:27 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 1742 at /oss