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PubMed1987

Odor-taste mixtures.

A solution with both an odor and a taste may be considered to be a mixture that involves two sensory modalities. Estimates of the intensity of such mixtures appear to be additive. If the overall intensity of each of the unmixed components is compared with the overall intensity of the mixture, the additivity approaches 100%. If the intensities of the smell and taste of the unmixed components are compared with the overall intensity of the mixture, the additivity is less than 100%. Thus, the specific question that is given to the subjects influences the magnitude of the estimations. This suggests that the additive process involves a central (cognitive) mechanism. Considering that the perception of complex flavors also involves sensory information of touch, temperature, and possibly vision and hearing, a central interpretation seems appropriate. The influences of smell on the perception of taste also appear to involve a cognitive mechanism. These smell-taste confusions appear to be stimulus specific and are usually resolved in favor of taste. This may be true because the sensations of pressure, movement, and resistance are usually localized in the mouth. These accompanying sensations then suggest that the taste organs are active in determining the result even when no true taste is present. The influences of taste on the perception of smell are most pronounced when the tastant contains an odor. This suggests that the effect may be peripheral. That is, odorant molecules may be moving from the pharynx, through the posterior nares, to the olfactory receptors. If this interpretation is correct, the influences of taste on smell may be an odor-odor mixture involving "retronasal" and "nasal" olfaction.

Animals↗
PubMed1994

Chemical senses.

In the last decade, studies using approaches from molecular biology have substantially advanced our understanding of the early events in olfaction and taste. The many odorants that we can recognize may well interact with many distinct receptor proteins. Of the four taste qualities that we recognize, studies on salty and sour suggest that these tastes involve ion channels in the membrane of receptor cells while sweets and bitters bind to receptor proteins. Some volatiles (pheromones) play special roles in reproductive behavior via the vomeronasal organ (VNO) and the accessory olfactory system. Initial belief that humans lack a VNO has been questioned recently, thus raising the fascinating possibility of human pheromones. The roles that taste and smell play in the world of the newborn are very different. Acceptance of sweet and rejection of bitter appear to be hard-wired while the affect associated with odors depends much more on experience. Genetic variation may produce total losses (Kallman's syndrome produces anosmia and familial dysautonomia produces ageusia) or losses specific to certain stimuli. The best known of the specific anosmias is that for androstenone, which has no smell to some, a urinous smell to others, and a smell like sandalwood to still others. Analogous to the specific anosmias, some individuals are unable to taste PROP while others, supertasters, perceive PROP to be exceedingly bitter. Clinical studies reveal pathologies responsible for total or partial losses. The olfactory system, dependent on one cranial nerve, is more vulnerable than taste, and total anosmia is a relatively common clinical problem. Three cranial nerves carry taste and two of those nerves inhibit one another such that damage to one disinhibits the other and preserves over-all taste function. Total ageusia is very rare. Throughout these studies we see that taste and olfaction have different properties and often different functions (e.g. odor and reproduction). Yet taste and smell can also be integrated to determine what does or does not enter the body. In Adrian's words, "we are dealing with the sense organs which signal the quality of the air we breathe and that of the food and drink we propose to swallow."

Ageusia↗
PubMed2000

Olfactory dysfunction and extent of white matter abnormalities in multiple sclerosis: a clinical and MR study.

BACKGROUND: The relative contribution to the olfactory dysfunction of the lesions in the specific brain regions involved in olfaction compared with the lesions scattered all over the rest of the brain has not been fully clarified yet in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). The concurrent use of Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) and a standardized test of odor identification ability now permits to study the relation between smell loss and the extent of white matter abnormalities. METHODS: We tested the olfactory function of 40 patients with definite MS and of 40 age-sex- and smoking-habit-matched healthy controls by using the Cross Cultural Smell Identification Test. We measured also the lesion load on T2-weighted images in the inferior-frontal and temporal lobes and in the rest of the brain in MS patients. Therefore, we tried to correlate measures of lesion load and smell test scores. RESULTS: A robust correlation was demonstrated between MR measures of lesion load in the white matter of the olfactory brain region and smell loss (r=-0. 739, P<0.0001). A significant relationship has been found even after taking potential confounding factors, such as sex, age, disease duration, disability, anxiety and depression, into account (r=-0.90, P<0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: Our findings show, in MS patients with stable neurological impairment and no recent disease exacerbation, a correlation between smell loss and the lesion load in the regions of the brain involved in olfaction and support the theory that the extent and severity of MRI abnormalities in specific brain regions are related to the presence of selective neurologic and neuropsychologic impairment.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

Treatment with AC pulsed electromagnetic fields improves olfactory function in Parkinson's disease.

Olfactory dysfunction is a common symptom of Parkinson's disease (PD). It may manifest in the early stages of the disease and infrequently may even antedate the onset of motor symptoms. The cause of olfactory dysfunction in PD remains unknown. Pathological changes characteristic of PD (i.e., Lewy bodies) have been demonstrated in the olfactory bulb which contains a large population of dopaminergic neurons involved in olfactory information processing. Since dopaminergic drugs do not affect olfactory threshold in PD patients, it has been suggested that olfactory dysfunction in these patients is not dependent on dopamine deficiency. I present two fully medicated Parkinsonian patients with long standing history of olfactory dysfunction in whom recovery of smell occurred during therapeutic transcranial application of AC pulsed electromagnetic fields (EMFs) in the picotesla flux density. In both patients improvement of smell during administration of EMFs occurred in conjunction with recurrent episodes of yawning. The temporal association between recovery of smell and yawning behavior is remarkable since yawning is mediated by activation of a subpopulation of striatal and limbic postsynaptic dopamine D2 receptors induced by increased synaptic dopamine release. A high density of dopamine D2 receptors is present in the olfactory bulb and tract. Degeneration of olfactory dopaminergic neurons may lead to upregulation (i.e., supersensitivity) of postsynaptic dopamine D2 receptors. Presumably, small amounts of dopamine released into the synapses of the olfactory bulb during magnetic stimulation may cause activation of these supersensitive receptors resulting in enhanced sense of smell. Interestingly, in both patients enhancement of smell perception occurred only during administration of EMFs of 7 Hz frequency implying that the release of dopamine and activation of dopamine D2 receptors in the olfactory bulb was partly frequency dependent. In fact, weak magnetic fields have been found to cause interaction with biological systems only within narrow frequency ranges (i.e., frequency windows) and the existence of such frequency ranges has been explained on the basis of the cyclotron resonance model.

Aged↗
PubMed1989

[A study on the mechanism of phleboid olfactory function].

Phleboid olfactory test has wide clinical application for olfactory disturbance. Many unclarified aspects still remain concerning the mechanism of smell after an intravenous infusion of Alinamin. It is believed that when Alinamin is infused intravenously and byproducts are discharged from the blood into the alveoli, odorous substances reach the nasal cavity through exhalation. In order to clarify the mechanism of smell in more detail, we conducted the following experiments: 1) Cases of laryngectomy were examined to determine if intravenous infusion of Alinamin affected the olfactory organ. 2) Saliva specimens in healthy subjects were collected before and after intravenous infusion of Alinamin and examined for the presence of a secreted odorous substance using a functional test. 3) Healthy subjects who were inhibited in their sense of smell were examined for the presence of garlic odor after intravenous infusion of Alinamin. The results were as follows: 1) 80% of subjects of laryngectomy without cotton in the nares and 20% of subjects of laryngectomy with cotton in the nares perceived the garlic odor. 2) Garlic odorous substance was not recognized in saliva specimens collected before and after intravenous infusion of Alinamin. 3) The healthy subjects inhibited in their sense of smell and intravenously infused with Alinamin perceived the odor at the same time as exhalation. The above results indicated that the mechanism of smell after intravenous infusion of Alinamin occurred via exhalation, but not through the other routes.

Adult↗
PubMed1994

Improvement of olfaction following pansinus surgery.

This study involves ten consecutive anosmic patients who underwent pansinus surgery and have been followed and tested a minimum of one year. They all had advanced obstructive bilateral nasal polyposis and pansinusitis. Persistent severe loss of smell was one of the chief complaints in all ten patients. The surgery performed included bilateral nasal polypectomies, bilateral sphenoidethmoidectomies and bilateral nasal antral windows. Post-operatively, all were treated with a topical corticosteroid nasal spray. Seven of these patients were asthmatic and three were also aspirin-sensitive, some being cortisone-dependent. The University of Pennsylvania Smell Identification Test (UPSIT) was administered pre-operatively and then at six-month intervals in the post-operative period. Significant initial improvement in smell acuity occurred in seven of the ten patients. One of the seven, however, developed recurrence of the nasal polyposis and again lost his smell capabilities somewhere between the twelfth and eighteenth post-operative months. Another of the patients who did not improve smell sensitivity post-operatively occasionally is aware of fleeting periods of return.

Administration, Intranasal↗
PubMed1998

Suprathreshold intensity and annoyance reactions in experimental challenge to toluene and n-butyl acetate among subjects with long-term solvent exposure.

OBJECTIVES: This study explores reactions to low-level chemical challenge, aiming at the development of test procedures for assessing individual sensitivity to smells and chemicals. METHODS: Subjects with symptoms and neuropsychological test results compatible with toxic encephalopathy type 2A (TE-2A) and 2B (TE-2B) and unexposed referents (N=12 in each group) were challenged in an exposure chamber. Toluene exposure was started at 11 mg/m3, and it followed a geometric progression scale with a ratio of 2, until reaching 180 mg/m3. In a counterbalanced design, the subjects were similarly exposed to n-butyl acetate starting at a concentration of 14 mg/m3 and increasing to 228 mg/m3. At each exposure level, smell intensity was measured on a 7-step category scale. Mucous membrane irritation and annoyance reactions were rated on visual analogue scales. RESULTS: Both TE groups showed high sensitivity to the low-level solvent challenge, which provoked immediate annoyance and fatigue reactions. In particular the TE-2B group related smell intensity to various annoyance dimensions during exposure to n-butyl acetate, a pattern not observed during toluene exposure. The reference group clearly separated smell intensity and annoyance reactions in both exposure conditions. CONCLUSIONS: The reaction of the TE cases suggests that chemical sensitivity can be distinguished from normal annoyance reactions by the inability to differentiate between smell intensity and an experience of irritation from mucous membranes in air concentrations well below the trigeminal irritation threshold level. Fatigue coreactivity in challenges to single substances below the neurotoxic level may also be important.

Acetates↗
PubMed1997

Odour and colour as cues for taste-avoidance learning in domestic chicks

In addition to being visually conspicuous, many chemically defended insects also produce olfactants when attacked. These olfactants may constitute 'warning odours', comparable in their effects to warning colours. This hypothesis was tested by examining the ability of two odours, almond and vanilla, to act as cues for avoidance of quinine-flavoured water in domestic chicks, Gallus gallus domesticusIn experiment 1, chicks were trained to avoid familiar-coloured quinine solution, novel-coloured solution, or novel-smelling solution. When the novel smell was almond it enhanced the rate of avoidance learning, as did the novel colour cue; but vanilla odour had no effect on rate of learning. In experiment 2, chicks were trained to avoid quinine solution that was paired with a compound cue involving both colour and odour. They were then tested in extinction with both cues, either cue alone, or neither cue. When the odour cue was almond it overshadowed the colour cue: chicks that had learned to avoid almond-smelling quinine solution of a particular colour subsequently avoided almond-smelling water and drank water that did not smell of almond, regardless of its colour. Vanilla odour, by contrast, exerted no control over behaviour when paired with a colour cue during acquisition. In experiment 3, chicks were trained to discriminate palatable from quinine-flavoured water when the latter was distinguished solely by an odour cue. The discrimination was learned more readily when the cue was almond than when it was vanilla; and a memory test revealed significant avoidance of almond odour, but not of vanilla, after 24 h. We conclude that odours can act as discriminative stimuli for taste-avoidance learning in birds and that they can sometimes exert more powerful control over behaviour than do visual cues. However, not all odours are equally efficacious. The results are discussed in relation to aposematism and mimicry.

Journal Article↗
PubMed2003

The specificity of restrained versus unrestrained eaters' responses to food cues: general desire to eat, or craving for the cued food?

Previous research has shown that exposure to food cues increases eating, especially in restrained eaters. The present study attempted to determine whether this elevated consumption reflects a general desire to eat in response to food cues, or specific desire/craving for the cued food. Restrained and unrestrained eaters were exposed to the smell of either pizza, cookies, or no smell for 10 minutes, were asked to write their thoughts (corresponding to the smell cue) about pizza, cookies or in general, and were then presented with either pizza or cookies to 'taste and rate'. Results indicated that restrained eaters are more responsive than are unrestrained eaters to pre-eating exposure to smell and thought cues, eating significantly more after such cues. An interaction with food type, however, indicated that restrained eaters ate more only when the food presented to eat was the same as the prior food cues. Self-reported desire to eat, liking, and craving for a particular food increased somewhat for restrained eaters after exposure to the smell and thought of that food. Restrained eaters' intake of a food that differed from the pre-eating food cues did not differ from their intake following no prior exposure to food cues. Restrained eaters thus showed a highly specific response to exposure to food cues.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2000

[Olfactory disorders and general pathology. Analysis and review of the literature].

INTRODUCTION: Disturbances of the sense of smell have been documented in many general pathologies. The actual etiology of such impairments is often difficult to determine. The aim of the authors is to review the literature on olfactory disorders in general diseases. CURRENT KNOWLEDGE AND KEY POINTS: Acute and chronic liver disorders are frequently associated with hyposmia, which can be improved by vitamin A intake. Renal insufficiency could induce hyposmia according to the severity of the renal disease. Olfactory disorders seem to regress after transplantation but not after dialysis. Patients with AIDS--especially neurological forms--often present with taste and smell impairments. Smell alteration can also be noted in hypothyroidism and pseudohypoparathyroidism. In addition, taste and smell impairments have been described in patients with adrenal insufficiency or Cushing's disease. Subsequent to glucocorticoid therapy, adrenal insufficiency can induce regressive olfactory hypersensitivity. Olfactory impairments in diabetic patients can be associated with diabetic macrovascular manifestations due to ischemic alterations in the olfactory neuroepithelium. Impairment of the sense of smell has been described in many systemic diseases such as Horton's arteritis and Sjögren's syndrome. FUTURE PROSPECTS AND PROJECTS: Olfactory disorders should be investigated in patients presenting one of the above-mentioned diseases.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗
PubMed2001

Cerebral asymmetry of emotion and its relationship to olfaction in infancy.

To examine the relationship between emotional development and laterality, smells differing in affective valence (predetermined by adults) were presented to 10 neonates. Each infant was presented with two positive and two negative food-related odorants, each paired with a neutral stimulus. Each pair was presented twice, once with the odorant to the right nostril and once to the left nostril. These eight trials were repeated in two blocks. In addition, control trials, where a puff of air was administered to both nostrils, were included. Head turning from midline position to presentation of the odorants as videotaped while the infant slept. Direction of initial head turn served as the dependent measure. A significant interaction with Smell x Nostril x Direction was found. Post hoc analyses revealed that significant effects occurred only for the positive smells. When the positive smells were presented to the left hemisphere, neonates made significantly more head turns towards the smell. This raises the possibility that approach behaviours may develop earlier than withdrawal behaviours.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1999

Efficacy of exogenous oral zinc in treatment of patients with carbonic anhydrase VI deficiency.

BACKGROUND: We previously described a disorder in 18 patients with decreased parotid saliva gustin/carbonic anhydrase (CA) VI secretion associated with loss of taste (hypogeusia) and smell (hyposmia) and distorted taste (dysgeusia) and smell (dysosmia). Because gustin/CAVI is a zinc-dependent enzyme we instituted a study of treatment with exogenous zinc to attempt to stimulate synthesis/secretion of gustin/CAVI and thereby attempt to correct the symptoms of this disorder. METHODS: Fourteen of the 18 patients with this disorder completed the study. They were treated with 100 mg of exogenous zinc daily for 4 to 6 months, in an open clinical trial. Both before and after treatment, measurements were obtained of parotid saliva gustin/CAVI, parotid saliva, serum and urine zinc, taste and smell function, and, in some patients, examination of circumvallate taste buds by electron microscopy. RESULTS: Treatment success was predicated upon significant increases in parotid saliva gustin/CAVI. This occurred in 10 of the 14 patients who were labeled responders; they also exhibited improvement in taste and smell acuity, a diminution in dysgeusia and dysosmia and increased zinc concentrations in parotid saliva, serum, and urine. Taste bud morphology returned to normal in each responder in whom it was measured. No increase in gustin/CAVI occurred in 4 patients who were labeled nonresponders; they exhibited no improvement in taste or smell acuity and no increases in parotid saliva zinc. However, serum and urine zinc increased to levels similar to those measured in the 10 responders. Two of 4 nonresponders reported diminution in dysgeusia and dysosmia. Taste bud morphology did not change from the abnormal state in the 1 nonresponder in whom it was measured. CONCLUSIONS: Zinc treatment is effective in patients in whom this trace metal increases synthesis/secretion of gustin/CAVI and ineffective in those in whom it does not. Increased gustin/CAVI in this disorder is probably associated with zinc stimulation of the gene responsible for the synthesis/secretion of gustin/CAVI. Among nonresponders, zinc was ineffective for several possible reasons, including resistance to zinc and possible sialylation of gustin/CAVI, which may render it functionally ineffective. Results suggest the hypothesis that gustin/CAVI is a trophic factor that promotes growth and development of taste buds through its action on taste bud stem cells.

Administration, Oral↗
PubMed2003

A taste comparison of three different liquid steroid preparations: prednisone, prednisolone, and dexamethasone.

OBJECTIVES: To determine whether significant differences exist in the taste, texture, smell, and aftertaste of three commonly used liquid steroid preparations: prednisone, prednisolone, and dexamethasone. METHODS: This was a double-blind study of medical students and residents. Participants were asked to drink 5 mL of each steroid preparation, and grade each on a one-to-five-point scale for the categories of smell, texture, taste, and aftertaste. A score of 5 was considered most positive, 3 neutral, and 1 most negative. The medications were placed in small cups with the letter A, B, or C on them. The steroids were then administered in an advancing alphabetical format. A saltine cracker and water were administered between tastings in an attempt to remove any residual flavor. Data were analyzed using mean score and standard deviations, and mean rank and standard deviation by the Friedman test. Statistical significance was set at p < 0.05. RESULTS: Eighty-six adult volunteers participated in the study: 53 (62%) were male and 33 were female. The overall mean scores and standard deviations (+/-SDs) for prednisolone, dexamethasone, and prednisone were 3.43 (+/-1.05), 3.19 (+/-1.01), and 2.29 (+/-0.98), respectively. Using the Friedman test, the mean ranks for smell, texture, taste, and aftertaste for dexamethasone were 2.37, 2.06, 2.19, and 2.22. The corresponding mean ranks for prednisone were 1.80, 1.52, 1.31, and 1.27; and for prednisolone, the mean ranks were 1.83, 2.41, 2.51, and 2.52, respectively. Dexamethasone scored better in all four categories than prednisone (p < 0.05). Prednisolone scored better than prednisone in the categories of texture, taste, and aftertaste (p < 0.05); there was no statistical difference in smell. Dexamethasone had a higher mean rank than prednisolone for smell (p < 0.05); for the remaining three categories, there was no statistical difference. CONCLUSIONS: In adult volunteers, both prednisolone and dexamethasone liquid were more palatable than prednisone liquid.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Inherited Alzheimer's disease PS-1 olfactory function: a 10-year follow-up study.

This study was undertaken to evaluate smell tests as a clinical marker for identifying mutation carrier status and determining the clinical diagnosis of presenilin-1 Alzheimer's disease (AD) in family members of those afflicted with the disease. Ten years ago, we gave the self-administered, 40-question scratch and sniff University of Pennsylvania Smell Identification Test to 18 at-risk family members, individuals with dominantly-inherited Alzheimer's disease. Testing results were normal 10 years ago except in the case of one individual who had smoked three packs of cigarettes a day for more than 23 years. Four subjects tested in 1990 are now afflicted with Alzheimer's disease, including the smoker. The smell test in 1990 did not demonstrate predictive capabilities before clinical conversion to dementia. At follow-up, two subjects were too impaired to take the test. Two "converted" from normal smell function to abnormal function with a wide range in score. Study findings indicate that the smell test is too variable a measure to be used as a reliable test for predicting or verifying a diagnosis of presenilin-1 Alzheimer's disease.

Aged↗
PubMed1988

[Development of breath detector for halitosis (1). Theory and method].

A Breath Detector was developed and its clinical application was investigated. It is very difficult to judge how one's own breath smells. The sense of smell is the most unreliable of the senses and has still not been scientifically clarified. Everyone who tried to accurately express the strength and the character of some smell will be puzzled to see the difficulty of expression. A smell on one's breath is actually impossible to expressed on the same scale as for weight or length. On a laboratory basis, it is certainly possible to clarify the concentration and the mass of some odor by using graphic or numerical values with Gas chromatography. However such measuring methods at laboratories are not available in our daily clinical life when it is required to check easily, anytime and anywhere. In consideration of the above, We believe that this Breath Detector with a built-in small special gas sensor will act a substitute for an analyzer, and that the device can express how strong the smell on one's breath is. Therefore we recommend Breath Detector as a product many patients have been waiting for.

Dental Devices, Home Care↗
PubMed2005

Odors and the perception of hygiene.

Although certain odors, such as lemon, are commonly associated with cleanliness and positive hygiene, empirical assessment of such associations for other odors and attributes is generally lacking. Moreover, differences between men and women in such associations have not been established. In this study of lemon, onion, pine, and smoke odors, ratings were obtained from 142 men and 336 women (M age= 30.1 yr., SD = 12.3) for odor intensity, gender association (masculine/feminine), and the success, sociability, intelligence, cleanliness, and attractiveness of a hypothetical person whose clothes smell like the odor in question. Ratings of the pleasantness or unpleasantness one would attribute to each odor in various rooms of the home were obtained, as well as a specification of whether such ratings are influenced by laundry habits, e.g., whether laundry is smelled before or after washing. Numerous associations were found. For example, a hypothetical person whose clothes smell of pine was rated as relatively more successful, intelligent, sociable, sanitary, and attractive than one whose clothes smelled of lemon, onion, or smoke. Sex differences, as well as differences between people who reported smelling their own laundry, were also found.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

Consequences of olfactory loss and adopted coping strategies.

UNLABELLED: The aims of this study were to investigate the effects of loss of smell as regards the quality of life and the coping strategies used. METHODS: Seventy-two patients with anosmia (46%) or hyposmia (54%) filled in the validated Multi-Clinic Smell and Taste Questionnaire, the validated General Well-being Schedule (GWBS), and answered other questions shown to be of good validity. RESULTS: Several kinds of negative effects, risks associated with the loss, interference with daily routines and deteriorations in well-being were common. Physical health, financial security, profession, partnership, friendship, emotional stability and leisure were also deemed to be negatively affected and GWBS scores show compromised psychological well-being. The importance of olfaction seemed to be more noticeable after the loss of smell, and several kinds of problem- and emotion-focused coping strategies were adopted by these patients. CONCLUSIONS: We found that the loss of smell had substantial adverse effects on the quality of life and that high priority should be given to its diagnosis and treatment and to further research in this field. Furthermore, a combination of problem- and emotion-focused coping strategies may be suggested to patients who have recently lost the sense of smell.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1976

[On the effect of odourants in laboratory and field tests (author's transl)].

Odour nuisance reactions are of considerable importance in environmental hygiene. Their scientific analysis calls for a high degree of flexibility in the selection of adequate "access routes". The present paper deals with results of laboratory and field investigations in conjunction with the problem of odour pollution. In a laboratory test 50 test subjects were exposed for 2 1/2 hours either to H2S stimuli at a level of about 2.5 ppm or to pure air. The following effects were investigated: perception and evaluation of stimuli, subjective feeling as well as ability to concentrate. As expected, perceived intensity and intolerance of the stimulus decreased linearly with the duration of exposure; the subjective feeling and concentration were not significantly affected by smell as was demonstrated by comparative checks. By contrast, field investigations of differently exposed groups of population clearly demonstrated negative effects of odour pollution. 704 inhabitants of the city of Düsseldorf, residing in control and exposed areas, were given standardised questionnaires by interviewers to obtain information on reactions to offensive smell. The multivariate data analysis produced a 3-factor reaction pattern, with factor I (general reaction to offensive smell on a sensory basis) being particularly discriminatory. Moreover, it was found that, under identical exposure conditions, persons with a low adaptive tolerance professed themselves to be much more disturbed by the smell than did others with a higher degree of adaptive tolerance to the nuisance. A comparison of the laboratory findings with the field values suggests that the scientific analysis of reactions to the smell pollution presupposes an existential engagement of the examinee which requires that the disturbing stimulus be "embedded" in the pattern of the daily reality of life. This, of course, can hardly be realized in the laboratory.

Adaptation, Psychological↗