Does food really taste as how you smell them? Science shows us the connection between these two important senses- smell and taste. According to Motherboard, one's taste organ is linked to the nasal. "The only reason you can taste your food is because while you are chewing bits and pieces of food are getting shuttled from the back of your mouth to your nasal cavity." Hence, if you want to enjoy your favorite sumptuous meal, you have to put your sense of smell on check. Experts suggested an effective way to savor your Thanksgiving meal- quiet breathing.
Researchers found that chewed food volatiles are thrown at the back of the mouth that blocks the way of the air. Taste is created when this instance happened. The air that human breathes produces a covering surrounding the food particles to prevent them from falling into the lungs. When a person exhales, the air is being carried to the nasal cavity which then will be sensed by the olfactory cells.
According to Medical Dictionary, "Olfactory cells are a sensory cell specialized for the reception of sensory stimuli caused by odors."
One's breathing rate affects the movement of the food volatiles. The researchers suggested that in order to have a better taste of food, one should breathe slowly. Quiet and slow breathing maximizes the movement of the food substances from the back of the mouth to the nasal cavity. This creates a greater contact on the smell of the food which results to more appealing taste.
Researchers also found that another influencing factor to make eating more pleasurable is the interrupting sound in the environment. Loud and distracting sound can restrict a person from enjoying his meal. Charles Spencer, environmental psychology professor at Oxford University conducted experiments that aim to see how sound and taste are connected.
Results show that sound higlights more the taste of the food making it either irresistible or not. "We all think-chef, psychologist, food critic alike-that we can just taste the food on the plate, or the wine in the glass. Our experience and our enjoyment of taste and flavors of food at home, in the air, in a restaurant, is as much about everything else as it is about the ingredients and how they're prepared. Sound is the forgotten flavor sense. What we hear has a much bigger influence than any of us realize," Spencer stated.
