Sensory specific satiety is a sensory hedonic phenomenon that refers to the declining satisfaction generated by the consumption of a certain type of food, and the consequent renewal in

appetite Appetite is the desire to eat food items, usually due to hunger. Appealing foods can stimulate appetite even when hunger is absent, although appetite can be greatly reduced by satiety. Appetite exists in all higher life-forms, and serves to reg ...

resulting from the exposure to a new

flavour Flavor or flavour is either the sensory perception of taste or smell, or a flavoring in food that produces such perception. Flavor or flavour may also refer to: Science *Flavors (programming language), an early object-oriented extension to Lisp ...

or food.Raynor H, Epstein L. Dietary Variety, Energy Regulation, and Obesity. ''Psychological Bulletin'' 2001; 127: 325-341
full text
/ref> The phenomenon was first described in 1956 by the French physiologist

Jacques Le Magnen Ancient and noble French family names, Jacques, Jacq, or James are believed to originate from the Middle Ages in the historic northwest Brittany region in France, and have since spread around the world over the centuries. To date, there are over ...

. The term "sensory specific satiety" was coined in 1981 by

Barbara J. Rolls Barbara may refer to: People * Barbara (given name) * Barbara (painter) (1915–2002), pseudonym of Olga Biglieri, Italian futurist painter * Barbara (singer) (1930–1997), French singer * Barbara Popović (born 2000), also known mononymously ...

and

Edmund T. Rolls Edmund T. Rolls is a neuroscientist and Professor at the University of Warwick. Rolls is a neuroscientist with research interests in computational neuroscience, including the operation of real neuronal networks in the brain involved in vision, ...

. The concept illustrates the role of physical stimuli in generating appetite and, more specifically, explains the significance of

taste The gustatory system or sense of taste is the sensory system that is partially responsible for the perception of taste (flavor). Taste is the perception produced or stimulated when a substance in the mouth reacts chemically with taste recepto ...

, or food flavour in relation to

hunger In politics, humanitarian aid, and the social sciences, hunger is defined as a condition in which a person does not have the physical or financial capability to eat sufficient food to meet basic nutritional needs for a sustained period. In t ...

. Besides

conditioned satiety Conditioned satiety is one of the three known food-specific forms of suppression of appetite for food by effects of eating, along with alimentary alliesthesia and sensory-specific satiety. ''Conditioned satiety'' was first evidenced in 1955 in rat ...

and alimentary alliesthesia, it is one of the three major phenomena of satiation. An Ingestive Classics paper on the topic has been written in conversation with

(see https://www.ssib.org/web/classic24.php) Chinese buffet2

Sensory specific satiety is most commonly illustrated in the laboratory setting by offering participants a first course ''ad libitum'' then after a short interval offering a second course or access to a standard

buffet A buffet can be either a sideboard (a flat-topped piece of furniture with cupboards and drawers, used for storing crockery, glasses, and table linen) or a system of serving meals in which food is placed in a public area where the diners serve ...

. After the eating a first course consisting of one food consumers are less likely to select that food again if offered the same food in a second course, or to select this food again from an array presented in a buffet. The more variety offered, the more people will eat. Thus, a larger amount of food will be eaten at a buffet because the variety of foods and flavors presented renews the desire to eat (appetite) in the individual. A study conducted by Rolls and van Duijvenvoorde in 1984 verified this process by simulating a buffet-style meal. They fed participants four courses of the same food or four courses of different foods which included sausages, bread and butter, chocolate dessert, and bananas. The results revealed a 44% increase in overall food consumption when exposed to the meals with a variety of foods. Postingestive feedback factors such as

energy density In physics, energy density is the amount of energy stored in a given system or region of space per unit volume. It is sometimes confused with energy per unit mass which is properly called specific energy or . Often only the ''useful'' or ex ...

and

nutrient composition A nutrient is a substance used by an organism to survive, grow, and reproduce. The requirement for dietary nutrient intake applies to animals, plants, fungi, and protists. Nutrients can be incorporated into cells for metabolic purposes or excrete ...

could affect the

palatability Palatability (or palatableness) is the hedonic reward (i.e., pleasure) provided by foods or fluids that are agreeable to the " palate", which often varies relative to the homeostatic satisfaction of nutritional, water, or energy needs. The palat ...

of a food which in turn would inhibit or facilitate sensory specific satiety. Studies done by Birch & Deysher (1986) and B.J. Rolls ''et al.'', summarized in a paper by Raynor and Epstein, show that postingesitive feedback does not influence sensory specific satiety. Since postingestive feedback seems to have little effect on the expression of sensory specific satiety, it is probable that sensory specific satiety is more driven by external factors, such as the sensory properties of the food, than internal factors.

Obesity in relation to sensory specific satiety

Studies have shown that eating a limited variety of foods can result in monotony effects, which some have termed "long-term sensory-specific satiety". By continuing to eat similar meals, a dieter can reduce their overall food intake and use sensory specific satiety as a tool for

weight loss Weight loss, in the context of medicine, health, or physical fitness, refers to a reduction of the total body mass, by a mean loss of fluid, body fat (adipose tissue), or lean mass (namely bone mineral deposits, muscle, tendon, and other con ...

. In contrast, eating a large variety of foods is thought to be a driver of overconsumption with potential links to

obesity Obesity is a medical condition, sometimes considered a disease, in which excess body fat has accumulated to such an extent that it may negatively affect health. People are classified as obese when their body mass index (BMI)—a person's ...

because of the stimulation of appetite from diverse foods. Foods which are high in energy density do not produce a greater level of sensory specific satiety than foods which are low in energy density.Rolls BJ, Van Duijvenvoorde PM, Rowe EA. Variety in the diet enhances intake in a meal and contributes to the development of obesity in the rat. ''Physiology & Behavior'' 1983; 31(1):21-7
abstract
/ref>

Age in relation to sensory specific satiety

Sensory specific satiety varies depending on age, with older adults experiencing decreased sensory specific satiety and adolescents experiencing enhanced effects.Rolls BJ, McDermott TM. Effect of age on sensory-specific satiety. ''Am J Clin Nutr'' 1991; 54(6): 988-996
abstract
/ref> In a study focusing on age in sensory specific satiety, it was hypothesized that the degree of sensory specific satiety is affected by age due to the slow sensory loss experienced by people as they age. It was predicted that due to sensory impairment with ageing, older people might tend towards consuming a monotonous diet since foods are experienced as less pleasantness resulting from blunted sensory acuity. However, it was shown that the decline in sensory specific satiety observed in ageing was not linked to sensory loss; instead, there is an unclear

cognitive Cognition refers to "the mental action or process of acquiring knowledge and understanding through thought, experience, and the senses". It encompasses all aspects of intellectual functions and processes such as: perception, attention, thought ...

process that relates to decline in sensory specific satiety that may reflect an overall desire in appetite with ageing compared to adolescents.

References

Sensory systems Nutrition