Contents:
- Medical Video: WHAT'S IN THE BOX CHALLENGE | Food Eating Competition | Food Challenge
- Why does the aroma of food make us want to eat?
- Hunger makes you more sensitive to the aroma of food
- Hunger and the aroma of food can make you eat more
Medical Video: WHAT'S IN THE BOX CHALLENGE | Food Eating Competition | Food Challenge
When walking and suddenly smell the food, many people then feel hungry and want to eat. Smelling the aroma of food instead of seeing food does sometimes make us feel hungry. What's more, the smell we smell is the food we like. Wow, it must have been once to refuse the desire to eat. But, why does smell of food make us hungry?
Why does the aroma of food make us want to eat?
Food is very tempting indeed. Not seeing food, just smelling the aroma can make us hungry and make us want to eat again and again. Food vendors also use this to attract customers. You may have often found food vendors who intentionally put their kitchens or cook food close to the way people like to walk. This might be one way to attract people who are on their way to buying food.
The aroma of food can trigger saliva signals to increase activity in the brain in sending information. A 2010 study found that sweet or fatty scents can activate brain areas associated with motivation to get these foods. So, don't be surprised if you are immediately hungry and may get hungry when you smell the food. This food aroma is related to the part of the brain that controls food intake.
Hunger makes you more sensitive to the aroma of food
When you are hungry, your ability to smell food is better. Your nose can smell the food even a little, so you begin to be interested in looking for it and you are getting hungry. This may be a natural instinct from humans. Although, the mechanism by which the brain controls the sensation of hunger, aroma, and food intake has not been further understood.
When you are hungry, the mechanism of the brain to smell the aroma of food increases. This can occur because of the endocannabinoid system. The study, published in the journal Nature Neuroscience, shows that the endocannabinoid system can control food intake using the sense of smell. Endocannabinoid is a chemical made by the body and serves to send messages between cells. Receptors in the endocannabinoid system are associated with sensations, such as euphoria, anxiety, and pain.
Researchers found that CB1 cannabinoid receptors in the brain connect the nervous system that processes odors (olfactory bulb) with a higher brain structure associated with odor (olfactory cortex). Hunger sensation can activate CB1 receptors, then this will activate olfactory bulb and olfactory cortex. So, the mechanism that occurs in the brain can increase your sensitivity to the aroma of food when hungry. Then, this can increase your desire to eat too.
Hunger and the aroma of food can make you eat more
Research in the journal Appetite shows that 24-hour hunger after fasting can improve your sense of smell and make you want to eat more than usual. No wonder, when you are hungry and smell the food, you will become more hungry and want to eat right away.
This research was also reinforced by a study published in the journal Eating Behaviors in 2003. This study shows that food aroma can cause a person to overeat. Researchers found that children who are overweight can eat more after smelling food. The strong aroma of food when you are really hungry may make your appetite greatly increase and make you eat again and again. In the end, you gain weight.
