1 Claude Bernard University Lyon 1, France.
2 University of Fribourg, Switzerland.
Autism. 2019 Aug;23(6):1460-1471. doi: 10.1177/1362361318815252. Epub 2018 Dec 7.
This study assessed whether olfactory familiarization can render food odors more pleasant, and consequently food more attractive, to children with autism spectrum disorder. Participants were first presented with a series of food odors (session 1). Then, they were familiarized on four occasions (time window: 5 weeks) with one of the two most neutral odors (the other neutral odor was used as control) (session 2). In session 3, participants smelled the entire series of odors again. Both verbal and facial responses were compared from session 1 to session 3. After session 3, the children were presented with two identical foods (one containing the familiarized odor and one the control odor) and were asked to choose between these foods. Results revealed (1) a specific increase in positive emotions for the familiarized odor and (2) that 68% of the children chose the food associated with the "familiarized odor" (children who chose the "familiarized odor" food exhibited significantly more sensory particularities). These findings suggest that it is possible to modulate olfactory emotions and expand the dietary repertoire of children with autism spectrum disorder. Application of this paradigm may enable innovative prospects for food education in autism.
本研究评估了嗅觉熟悉是否可以使自闭症谱系障碍儿童更喜欢食物气味，从而使食物更具吸引力。参与者首先接触一系列食物气味（第 1 阶段）。然后，他们在 5 周的时间窗口内四次熟悉两种最中性气味之一（另一种中性气味用作对照）（第 2 阶段）。在第 3 阶段，参与者再次闻到整个系列的气味。从第 1 阶段到第 3 阶段比较了口头和面部反应。第 3 阶段后，向孩子们呈现两种相同的食物（一种含有熟悉的气味，一种含有对照气味），并要求他们在这两种食物之间进行选择。结果显示：（1）熟悉的气味引起了特定的积极情绪增加；（2）68%的孩子选择了与“熟悉气味”相关的食物（选择“熟悉气味”食物的孩子表现出明显更多的感官特殊性）。这些发现表明，有可能调节嗅觉情绪并扩大自闭症谱系障碍儿童的饮食范围。这种范式的应用可能为自闭症的食物教育带来创新前景。
