Presentation Details
| Odor-induced taste enhancement in healthy children and adults Claudia Asensio, Yanina Pepino. University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, USA |
Abstract
Flavor perception arises from central multisensory integration, primarily involving taste and retronasal olfaction. The addition of odorants to foods or beverages can enhance perceived taste intensity, a phenomenon known as odor-induced taste enhancement (OITE). While adult studies suggest that OITE largely reflects associative learning between taste and odor cues, potential developmental differences in this process remain poorly understood. Using secondary analyses of laboratory studies comparing healthy individuals with clinical populations reporting chemosensory dysfunction, we examined OITE across age groups within the healthy cohort. Participants included individuals aged 12–20 years (mean (SD): 17.7 (3.0); 13 females), 21–40 years (26.4 (6.2); 20 females), and 41–80 years (58.8 (11.5); 13 females). Taste and odor intensity were assessed using the general Labeled Magnitude Scale for stimuli including sucrose with strawberry extract and citric acid with lemon extract, each presented at two concentrations. Participants rated perceived intensity with and without nose clips to isolate retronasal olfactory contributions. ANOVA results indicated that the two older age groups exhibited significantly greater retronasal OITE than the 12–20-year-old group. These findings suggest age-related differences in OITE magnitude. Future studies incorporating pre-test associative training between taste and odor cues are needed to determine whether reduced OITE in younger participants reflects developmental limitations in associative learning or simply reduced experiential exposure.
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No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author.
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