The “Old Man” ingredient is one of the magical formulas of Chanel No. 5.
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Editor’s note: If you have an elderly person in your family, or have lived with an elderly person, you may recognize that “the elderly do have an old-aged taste.” However, is the elderly really old-fashioned, or is your own psychological role at play? This article from The New York Times, originally titled Do Older People Have a Different Smell? The author Ann Bauer introduced the different views of the two scientists on this topic in the article, and finally came to the “old taste” through personal experience. “The conclusion.”
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Last year, my husband and I made a long trip to get a long vacation. So, during that time, we rented out our house. A pair of elderly couples became our tenants because of the renovation of the home.
When we got home and returned home, we found that they cleaned up the house, cleaned it, and left us two gifts.
But in addition to this, there is a special taste in the air. This smell smells a little stale and a bit sweet, just like the smell of the moldy strawberry in the carton.
So, I cleaned the whole house from inside to outside and from top to bottom. However, this strange smell is still floating in the air. This taste is not terrible, but it is really amazing. That night, I tried to search for a question with Google. “Is there an old man on the elderly?”
I found that the elderly really have an old taste. However, this discovery was later denied. Then, I don’t know if there is any.
Later, I took this question and communicated with several female writers. Their ages are mixed, older are in their 70s, younger are in their 40s, and their answers are diverse.
Younger women think that as they get older, they will have a strange taste. But for older womenSexually, this is more like discrimination against the elderly, and several of them feel that they have been offended.
For me, I am 52 years old this year. Therefore, I am a bit annoyed about this issue, but at the same time there is no comprehensive information. Whether it is for the present or the future, if there is any way to make the individual taste better, I am definitely willing to understand.
So, with this question, I consulted two authoritative scientists at the Monell Chemical Research Center. But the answers of the two scientists are also the same.
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46-year-old biologist Johan Lundstrom said his research found that a study published by Japanese researchers in 2001 found that the sebaceous glands of older people secrete more concentrations. The high unsaturated aldehyde “2-nonenal”, which often exudes a special taste mixed with grass, candles and fat.
This research by Dr. Longstrom is not very large. The samples used are from the armpits of subjects aged 20 to 95, and the other 41 subjects are smelly. Sort the intensity and the level of badness.
In addition, Langstrom and his colleagues also found that “the subjects can correctly indicate which scent samples are from older subjects, but it is difficult to identify samples from other age groups.”
However, George Preti, another Ph.D. at the Monell Chemical Research Center, has a different view. Dr. Preti is 74 years old and is an organic analytical chemist. He said his research findings are different from those of Japanese researchers and Dr. Longstrom.
In Dr. Preti’s study, he used the upper back of the subject and the forearm skin as a sample. After chromatographic and mass spectrometry analysis, he concluded that “there is no analytical method” to prove that the skin of the elderly secretes 2-decenal.
“In fact, the taste of the elderly is not heavy compared to young people,” Dr. Preti said. “Unless you experience a bad sanitation environment in a sanatorium or other environment, you won’t find people. I’m talking about this moldy, unpleasant smell.”
But Dr. Longstrom also disagrees with PretiboThis statement by Shishi. “I know Dr. Preti’s point of view, but he is wrong. His research is too narrow, and he is an old man, so he is also very sensitive to this topic.”
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In general, most studies have found that middle-aged men’s body odor is the most unpleasant in this so-called “smell blindness”. Their body odor is more difficult to accept than the masculinity of young men and older men (compared to the taste of middle-aged women is the most acceptable). This result is also confirmed by chemical analysis, with relatively few sebaceous gland secretions in young and old people.
The research by Dr. Longstrom has confirmed that “the elderly have an old taste.” But at the same time, he also mentioned that people generally accept this smell, smell it and accept it, and it is not particularly bad.
In the view of Dr. Longstrom, the reason why people feel bad about the elderly is mainly because of the environmental impact. He said that this is like the taste of fresh manure. If you smell this manure in the stables, you may feel acceptable. But if you smell this in your bedroom, you may not be able to accept it.
“In the Japanese researcher’s study, the researchers did not tell the subject what the taste was at first, and the subjects also thought the smell was ‘acceptable’,” Dr. Longstrom said. But when they told the subject that it was old-fashioned, the subject felt that the smell was ‘very disgusting’.”
In this study in Japan, there is a clear bias. In Japan, there is a word that describes the taste of the old man, called Kareishu, which has a serious derogatory color.
Japan also has a company called Mirai Clinical, which launched a persimmon-flavored soap bar that costs $16 to eliminate this unpleasant taste.
However, Dr. Preti did not recognize the findings of this study in Japan at all.
“In 2001, when the Japanese published this research, I was 57 years old. When I heard the research findings, I remember myself very angry.” Dr. Preti said, “Japanese researchers actually put The subjects in their 40s were included in the elderly group, which is simply Hulai.”
Although Dr. Longstrom praised the Japanese research findings, heThe industry centered on age is skeptical. He believes that expensive creams and soaps do not solve the problem of body odor.
“When people mention odors, they are easily dominated by the subconscious,” Dr. Longstrom said. “So, it doesn’t help to cover up the odor. Every scent will point to the specific chemistry in the nose.” Receptors, even if they have a strong perfume smell, they will smell these smells.”
Therefore, Dr. Longstroms advised his older parents to maintain proper exercise while ventilating the windows and changing sheets and clothes. However, he also mentioned that there are also some factors that are difficult to control, such as body odor caused by heredity or disease.
For Dr. Preti, although he does not think that the elderly have an old taste, he also suggests that the house should be open to windows and ventilation, and pay attention to personal hygiene.
The two scientists believe that patients with chronic diseases are more likely to have body odor, and this phenomenon has nothing to do with age. Dr. Preti believes that this is related to the individual’s diet, metabolism, and self-care. Dr. Longstrom also proposed a hypothesis (and he is still demonstrating this hypothesis) that persistent inflammation may lead to cell necrosis, which in turn produces an unpleasant odor.
For Dr. Langstrom’s hypothesis, Dr. Preti also considered it reasonable. He said, “It is true that this assumption has certain rationality. We have not talked about inflammatory diseases before, and my previous subjects have maintained a healthy body.”
In addition, the two scientists also mentioned that as people grow older, people’s sense of smell will continue to decline. Therefore, after the age of seventy, the body’s self-health system usually “failed”, and it is difficult to smell the smell of the mouth and nose or the taste of the knees.
“I can confidently say that the 80-year-old body smell is definitely smaller than the 30-year-old who is healthy.” Dr. Preti said, “but if you want Considering factors such as illness or disability, the situation is much more complicated. I am now caring for a person who has suffered from multiple strokes. This is another situation.”
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Nonenal and Nonanal, which smell sweeter, are all aldehyde chemicals. They have been used in concentrated formulations in the fragrance industry since their discovery in the 1920s.
Craig Warren is a scent consultant and he was vice president and research director of the Fragrance Science Division of the International Spices and Fragrances Company (IFF), a Nasdaq-listed company, he said. The furfural secreted in the sebaceous glands of the elderly is known as the ‘C-9 aldehyde’ in the perfume industry, and it is also one of the magical formulas of Chanel No. 5 perfume.”
“Because of the Americans, you may find that the Japanese will secrete more aldehyde secretions,” Warren said. “But I am almost 80 years old, and I have been in my life. Study the smell. If someone says that I have a special taste on my body, I will definitely not be angry. I would like to see if I can do something.”
In addition, Dr. Preti also said that the Japanese may be eating more fish because the sebaceous glands secrete more terpene.
For the problem of body odor, there is a new way to cover up the body and perhaps find a solution.
Warren is currently working with Belle Aire Creations, a perfume manufacturing company based in Illinois, USA. The company has developed a technology that eliminates a specific odor through a chemically masked odor product. Through this technique, a macromolecule that is difficult to volatilize can be formed, thereby inhibiting molecules of a particular odor from “escape” from the surface of the skin into the air.
“Nontenal is the indispensable ingredient for this technology that masks unpleasant odors,” Warren said. “But as far as I know, there is no need to buy a product that eliminates the taste of the elderly. Consumers. From the market side, this demand is not big.”
Warren also mentioned that this topic may be too sensitive for US companies.
The manufacturer of women’s care sprays has received a lot of complaints about gender discrimination, so many health and beauty companies will pay special attention to product development to avoid angering older consumers.
All in all, to solve the problem of “the taste of the elderly”, the best way at present is to pay attention to personal and family health issues.
Strengthen your personal well-being and maintain a healthy body while taking in plenty of water. In addition, pay attention to clean food problems, indoor ventilation, ventilation, and change clothing and bed linen quilt cover and other personal items.
Besides that, there is no need to worry about other things.
Recently, I also went to the old couple’s house where I rented a house and returned the items they had left when they lived in my house. They warmly received me and made tea for me. But when we were chatting, I suddenly smelled the strange smell of the familiar moldy sweet strawberry. However, in the living room where they are very lively and at the same time warm and comfortable, this taste has no effect on me.
Maybe, this is the environmental factor. From this perspective, it seems that Dr. Longstrom is indeed right.
Translator:井岛俊一