New research suggests that obese adults have a heightened ability to imagine odors, The Metro reported.
Researchers at the John B. Pierce Laboratory and the Yale School of Medicine found that the ability to vividly imagine the smell of popcorn, baking bread and even non-food odors is greater in those with a higher body weight.
The researchers had study participants complete a series of questionnaires that asked them to imagine both visual and odor cues and then to subsequently rate the vividness of these cues. The researchers found that individuals with a higher body mass index (BMI) reported greater ability to vividly imagine food and non-food odors.
"These findings highlight the need for a more individualistic approach in identifying factors that may increase risk for weight gain," Dr. Barkha Patel, lead author of the study, said in a statement.
Researcher Dr. Dana Small also said the findings call for "future work to assess imagery ability directly rather than relying upon self-report measures."
The study was based on Kavanagh's Elaborated Intrusion Theory of Desire, which proposes that creating vivid mental images stimulates and maintains food cravings triggered by the thought, smell and sight of food.
Although previous research demonstrates that food cravings occur more often in obese individuals, the role of odor imagery ability in this link had not been examined, The Los Angeles Times reported. If individuals with higher body weights report a heightened ability to imagine odors, this may intensify the food craving experience through the creation of more vivid images of flavors and aromas
The findings were presented at the Annual Meeting of the Society for the Study of Ingestive Behavior.
