body odour versus cheddar cheese

[piranha]

this is very interesting; i'll need to get ahold of this paper: "Cognitive Modulation of Olfactory Processing," by Ivan E. deAraujo et al., in Neuron 46:671-679 -- May 19, 2005.

summary:

We showed how cognitive, semantic information modulates olfactory representation in the brain by providing a visual word descriptor, 'cheddar cheese' or 'body odor,' during the delivery of a test odor ... and also during the delivery of clean air. Clean air labeled 'air' was used as a control. Subjects rated the affective value of the test odor as significantly more unpleasant when labeled 'body odor' than when labeled 'cheddar cheese.' In an event-related fMRI design we showed that the rostral anterior cingulate cortext (ACC)/medial orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) was significantly more activated by the test stimulus and by clean air when labeled 'cheddar cheese' than when labeled 'body odor,' and the activations were correlated with the pleasantness ratings. This cognitive modulation was also found for the test odor (but not for the clean air) in the amygdala bilaterally.

this might explain part of why i feel hygienically at odds with much of america, which i've wondered about occasionally, being as my sense of smell is not underdeveloped -- i never got the linguistic indoctrination about "body odour = bad".

via ozarque.

Comments

[aquaeri.livejournal.com]

I can also frequently tell when people are ill from their body odor, and often what sort of illness it is. Strange.

Actually, I've heard that there was an idea to teach dogs different kinds of illness smells to help with diagnosis. What's cool is that you're human, and your nose is that good.

I wonder if the gym workouts is the contact with all the old sweat on the equipment. Does it depend on the gym? They can have different standards of cleanliness.

[the-siobhan.livejournal.com]

I can often smell if somebody is really sleepy (as opposed to tired) sometimes if they are ill and less frequently if they are furious.

When people broke into my house I could tell there was a stranger in the room by being able to smell them. They smelled very sharply of fear.

[aquaeri.livejournal.com]

The one time I was mugged, I first realised something was wrong when I could smell fear, and then they were on me. But I haven't heard of being able to smell sleepy. I wonder what the chemical is in that case?