Lancashire: Memorable moments in our lives are usually associated with certain foods. Be it an event or a gathering of friends, it makes the occasion memorable in some way.
A new study conducted in the United Kingdom suggests that the aroma of certain foods can help restore memory in dementia patients.
In a study, researchers from Lancaster University in Lancashire gave older people tastes of foods from their youth, after which they had clearer memories of key moments.
The team of scientists hope that the research results will pave the way for new techniques to help dementia patients rebuild their memories.
“Finally, we have technology that can reconstruct memories using the flavors and aromas of different foods in the most effective way,” said study author Dr. Vaiva Kilinikaitte. These are strong cues given to us to recall the past.
In the new study, the researchers focused only on how the smell of the taste of food affects the memory process.
For the research, the team selected 12 elderly people and collected a total of 72 memories from them.
Half of these memories were related to food, including eating barbeque at a wedding, eating Thai cuisine on vacation, and eating strawberries in the hospital.
For these memories, the researchers worked with the participants to create 3D-printed flavored balls that could be eaten and mimicked real foods.
Participants were asked to recall memories collected before and after eating these flavors. After which it was concluded that his memory was cleared by the smell of food.
