Perception and pleasantness of a food with varying odor and flavor among the elderly and young.

Aging diminishes chemosensory functioning, in particular the sense of smell, thus possibly decreasing the enjoyment from food. We examined the effect of age on ortho- and retronasal perception and on pleasantness ratings of cream cheese in which 3 levels of food aromas (vanilla or basil) were combined, respectively, with 3 levels of sucrose or NaCl. The elderly (n=59, 60-85 years) and young (n=39, 21-38 years) subjects were also tested for olfactory identification ability. As expected, the young differentiated odor intensities better than the elderly. The sucrose and NaCl levels affected overall flavor intensity and pleasantness similarly in both age groups. The flavor of vanilla, but not that of basil, was favored by the elderly, suggesting that strong flavor in an appropriate context can improve the hedonic quality. The odor identification declined with age in the elderly and on average, it was lower in the elderly than in the young. Ability to identify odors was not associated with ratings of odor intensities.