Washington, Dec 17 (ANI): Usually the tempting smell of food is linked to hunger pangs, but scientists in the Netherlands think that foods can be engineered to release satiating aromas during chewing.

According to the researchers, such foods would fight the global epidemic of obesity with aromas that quench hunger and prevent people from overeating.

Scientists long have tried to develop tasty foods that trigger or boost the feeling of fullness, Rianne Ruijschop and colleagues noted.

Until recently, that research focused on food’s effects in stomach after people swallow it.

Efforts now have expanded to include foods that release hunger-quenching aromas during chewing.

Molecules that make up a food’s aroma apparently do so by activating areas of the brain that signal fullness.

The researchers’ analysis found that aroma released during chewing does contribute to the feeling of fullness and possibly to consumers’ decisions to stop eating.

The study has been published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. (ANI)