L3 & L4 | Sensory Aspects of Eating

Significant aspect of fat perception involves texture, with descriptive terms like 'greasy', 'creamy'. Fat content can be assessed by touch alone.

Rats have receptors specifically for detecting fats.

Smell plays a role in how we perceive fat, but the extent of this role in humans is debated.

The brain combines taste, smell, touch (somatosensory/textural), and body position (proprioceptive) information to create a unified flavor experience.

Brain region responsible for integrating taste, smell, and other sensory information to create a complete perception of flavour.

The combined sensation of taste and smell in the mouth.

Humans treat these senses as a single unit in the mouth (linguistically).

The pathway of smells that reach the olfactory receptors through the back of the throat.

The pathway of smells that reach the olfactory receptors through the nostrils.

A sensory experience where smelling a scent triggers a taste sensation.

A neurological phenomenon where stimulation of one sensory or cognitive pathway leads to automatic, involuntary experiences in a second sensory or cognitive pathway.

Flavour information is encoded (processed) in the brain, whether consciously noticed or not.

Flavour information is processed in the brain without conscious awareness or intent.

Individuals' olfactory experiences and memories shape their perception of smells, creating unique "smell worlds" influenced by personal history.

Young children have the same ability as adults to detect whether a smell is present or absent (smell acuity), but have a harder time distinguishing between different smells (odor discrimination).

Different cultures perceive smells in varied ways; this is shown by the different perceptions of specific smells like fish, soya beans, and marzipan between Japanese and other cultures like Germans or Tibetans.

A demonstration in a lab shows that smelling a mixture of odors (like cherry and smoky) later causes each component to be perceived with hints of the other smell (experiential effects).

Smelling a mixture of odors encodes that mixture in the brain, and smelling each component triggers recall of the overall mixture.

Brain damage or other memory loss, like patients with amnesia (HM), can lead to the inability to distinguish different smells; a rose smells the same as coffee or petrol.

Experts in a sense modality (like wine tasters), have trained their perception to recognize subtle changes and nuances within a specific odor category (like wine).

Professional wine tasters have the ability to detect specific nuances and components in wine, leading to detailed descriptions like length or character.

Specialized cells in taste buds on the tongue that detect different tastes.

Clusters of taste receptor cells located in structures called papillae on the tongue.

Small bumps on the tongue that hold taste buds.

Taste receptors that detect salty and sour tastes.

Taste receptors that detect sweet, bitter, umami, and potentially fat.

Many receptors for bitter taste; crucial for detecting potential toxins.

The dose of a substance needed to kill 50% of a test sample (like rats).

Different parts of the tongue have varying sensitivity to different tastes.

Taste buds have a short lifespan, with cells replenishing frequently.

Large, V-shaped papillae at the back of the tongue; contain numerous taste buds.

Free nerve endings that detect temperature (hot/cold), pain, and chemical stimulation.

Humans mostly perceive sensory experiences as intensity (weak to strong), hot/cold, and pleasure/pain.

A chemical in chili peppers; stimulates the hot sensation of the CCS.

Adding chili to a hot liquid makes it feel hotter than the same chili added to a cold liquid.

Throughout history, spices like chili have been highly valued and sought after—influencing trade routes and even exploration.

Eating chili peppers increases saliva production.

Chemicals produced by your body that can make you feel good or numb pain.

Global chili production is substantial, measured in millions of tonnes annually.

The pathway of smells that reach the olfactory receptors via the back of the throat.

The pathway of smells that reach the olfactory receptors through the nostrils.

The combined sensation created by taste, smell, and other sensations in the mouth.

Study showing that gradual increase in chilli pepper consumption can lead to increased tolerance and perceived enjoyment.

Smell receptors are located behind the bridge of the nose.

Smell perceived in the mouth is perceived as part of the food's flavor.

The brain combines taste, smell, touch, and body position information to create a full flavor experience.

Increased consumption of chilli peppers can lead to reduced perceived heat and potential enjoyment of the spice.

Volatile chemicals from food that ascend the nasopharynx during chewing and exhalation.

Receptors in the nasopharynx that are stimulated by volatiles from food, and are the same that are triggered by sniffing.

A flap that closes off the nasopharynx during eating and drinking to prevent food and liquids from entering the nose.

A surface area (4-6 cm2) in the nose, where olfactory receptor neurons are located.

Specialized neurons with microvilli that detect odor molecules in the mucus.

OE has functions like clearing 'old' smells, transporting odor molecules and protecting the receptors.

Different types of proteins (300-500 in humans) that bind specific odor molecules, triggering signals to the brain.

A type of protein that transmits smell signals internally, resulting in the depolarization of neurons.

A significant part of how fat is perceived, involving texture (e.g., greasy, creamy).

The brain's challenge of combining taste, smell, touch, and body position info to create a unified flavor experience.

The process by which the brain combines taste, smell, texture, and body position to create a full flavor experience.

The brain region responsible for integrating taste, smell, and other sensory information to create a complete flavor perception.

Fat content can be partially assessed by touch alone, although it's not the whole story for flavor perception.

Wine tasters are better at describing and recognizing wine characteristics than average drinkers.

Smell perception is based on recognizing patterns of smells.

The sensory perception of objects and their properties that touch the body. It's both an active and passive sense.

The perception of the location of muscles and joints in space.

Flavor is created by the brain combining taste, smell, touch (somatosensory), and body position (proprioceptive) information.

Individual differences in smell experiences due to genetics and cultural background.

Wine tasters' descriptions of wines are often inaccurate and fail to match the specific wine in half of the lab tests.

The phenomenon where attempting to describe something verbally impairs or affects perception of that something.