世論 What Japan Thinks

DIMSDRIVE Research recently released the results of a poll into the use of commercial odour reduction or elimination chemicals. They interviewed 5,453 members of their monitor pool in the middle of October by means of a private internet-based opinion poll. 56.9% of the sample was female, 67.0% married, and 53.4% of the whole sample had children. 13.8% lived alone, 24.2% with one other person, 48.4% with two or three others, and 13.6% with four or more people. The age profile was 0.9% in their teens, 14.5% in their twenties, 33.5% in their thirties, 30.8% in their forties, 15.0% in their fifties, and 5.3% aged sixty or older.

With only 7.0% of people noticing that their house smells, this compares favourably with those who don’t worry about their own smell. I’m surprised at cooking smells being so low, as it tends to be what I notice most often in other people’s houses, but perhaps it is just down to my unfamiliarity with Japanese cooking smells, especially as we run an almost vegetarian kitchen with very little deep frying or grilling.

Q1: What smells are you normally aware of around your house? (Sample size=5,453, multiple answer)

Rubbish smells	57.7%
Toilet smells	51.0%
Drain smell	47.6%
Sweat or body odours	43.2%
Shoe smells	36.3%
Frying or other cooking smells	35.9%
Clothes washing, drying or other smells	35.7%
Tobacco smells	32.4%
Mould smells	28.9%
Pet smells	18.0%
Vehicle smells (includes exhaust smells?)	17.7%
Other	1.6%
Don’t notice any smells	7.0%

Others included nappies, air conditioner running smells, moxibustion, and building materials (sick house syndrome?)

Q2: Do you use commercial odour reduction products at home? (Sample size=5,453)

Yes (to SQ1)	68.3%
No (to Q3)	29.0%
Don’t know	2.7%

Older people were slightly less likely to use them; people living alone were significantly less likely with 57.4% using them.

Q2SQ1: Against what sort of smells do you use odour reduction products? (Sample size=3,729, multiple answer)

Toilet	78.1%
Room	64.2%
Clothes (to SQ2)	62.2%
Fridge	34.3%
Rubbish or drains	24.4%
Pets	11.2%
Bath	4.6%
Other	3.5%
Don’t know	0.2%

Q2SQ2: What type of delivery mechanism does the product you use for clothes, etc have? (Sample size=2,319, multiple answer)

Mist spray (to SQ3 on)	86.6%
Free-standing type	26.0%
Hanging type	18.2%
Spray can type	6.1%
Other	0.6%
Don’t know	0.1%

Mist spray was almost twice as popular with women, and in more frequent use as the family size increased.

Q2SQ3: About how often do you use the mist spray? (Sample size=2,008)

Daily	12.3%
Five or six times a week	6.7%
Three or four times a week	20.5%
Once or twice a week	35.0%
Twice or thrice a month	14.0%
Once a month	4.0%
Less than once a month	4.3%
Don’t know	3.2%

Q2SQ4: What sort of fragrance of mist spray do you use? (Sample size=2,008, multiple answer)

Unscented	42.6%
Floral	26.8%
Green leaves, forest-like	19.8%
Green tea	17.4%
Herb	14.3%
Citrus	14.2%
Soap	13.2%
Other	0.7%
Don’t know	4.8%

Q2SQ5: What do you use the mist spray on? (Sample size=2,008, multiple answer)

Curtains	54.8%
Carpet, mats	51.3%
Sofa, cushion, etc	45.2%
Bed, pillow, etc	44.8%
Suits, uniforms	43.7%
Other clothes	40.0%
Air-dried washing	20.4%
Bags, shoes, hats, etc	18.3%
Car	18.1%
Kotatsu	6.5%
Pet items	5.8%
Baby items	1.7%
Other	2.5%
Don’t know	0.3%

Q2SQ6: Where do you buy your mist spray? (Sample size=2,008, multiple answer)

Drug store	77.3%
Supermarket	37.5%
Home centre	32.2%
Discount store	24.9%
100 yen shop	4.6%
Convenience store	1.4%
Mail order	0.9%
Other	1.1%
Can’t remember	0.4%
Don’t buy it myself	2.0%

Q2SQ7: What brand of mist spray do you use the most? (Sample size=2,008)

Resesh (Kao)	18.2%
Rukku (Lion)	3.1%
Ion Mist (Okamoto)	0.5%
Natureeze (Kobayashi)	0.3%
Aler-shatto (Fumakilla)	0.0%
Other	2.6%
Don’t know	1.7%

Q2SQ8: What are the important points when choosing a mist spray? (Sample size=2,008, multiple answer)

Strong odour-killing power	62.0%
Price	46.1%
Type of fragrance	42.3%
Has refill kits	41.3%
Good crease prevention	34.7%
Little or no effects on human body	34.6%
Anti-bacterial effects	33.8%
Unscented	28.6%
Green tea extract, silver ions, etc	25.7%
Easy to use or hold	21.3%
Size	20.1%
Quick-drying	19.4%
Fine mist	17.7%
Long-lasting fragrance	15.7%
Maker or brand	15.5%
Strength or weakness of fragrance	14.8%
Number of sprays per bottle	10.4%
Can use against pollen	9.4%
Bottle design	5.5%
Bottle shape	5.2%
Other	0.7%
Nothing in particular	1.3%

Q3: Why don’t you use odour reduction products? (Sample size=1,579, multiple answer)

Don’t like the smell	27.4%
Expensive	19.3%
Weak at killing odours	18.3%
Don’t need to use it	17.2%
Has ill effects of people or pets	16.6%
Use something other than commercial products	5.6%
Causes creasing	5.4%
Difficult to use	3.4%
Associated smells (propellant, etc) are bad	1.5%
Other	3.8%
No particular reason	25.0%

Q4: Other than commercial chemical products, what do you use for odour reduction at home? (Sample size=5,453, free answer)

Rank	Item	Votes
1	Charcoal	1,019
2	Coffee	542
3	Bamboo charcoal	223
4	Incense	175
5	Baking soda, sodium bicarbonate	153
6	Tea, tea leaves	139
7	Aromatherapy products	111
8	Soap	75
9	Air purifier	53
10	Herbs	51
11	Vinegar	41
12	Pot pouri	40
13	Perfume, cologne	39
14	Citrus fruit peel	27
15	Fresh fruit	26