Factors explaining individual differences in the oral perception of capsaicin, l ‐menthol, and aluminum ammonium sulfate

This research focused on the oral perception of naturally occurring chemical food compounds that are used in the pharma and food industries due to their pharmacological properties. They stimulate chemically sensitive receptors of the somatosensory system and are also chemesthetic compounds. Capsaicin is a naturally occurring alkaloid activating pungency perception. l‐Menthol is a cyclic monoterpene working also as a medical cooling agent. Aluminum ammonium sulfate is used as a dehydrating agent and additive known to activate astringency in oral cavity. The objective of the study was to identify factors explaining individual differences in the perception of oral chemesthesis measured as sensitivity to chemesthetic compounds and their recognition. The subjects (N = 205) evaluated quality‐specific prototypic compounds at five different concentration levels. Differences between gender were discovered in capsaicin sensitivity with men being less sensitive than women. Age was associated with the perception of capsaicin, l‐menthol, aluminum ammonium sulfate, and the combined oral chemesthetic sensitivity. Quality‐specific recognition ratings were also contributing to the sensitivity to chemesthetic compounds. A combined oral chemesthetic recognition score was created based on quality‐specific recognition ratings. Increasing age generally indicated weaker recognition skills. Better recognizers had a higher combined oral chemesthetic sensitivity score than poorer recognizers. These results provide new information about chemesthesis. The results suggest that age and gender are important factors in explaining individual differences in sensitivity to capsaicin, l‐menthol, and aluminum ammonium sulfate. In addition, recognition skills are associated with the sensitivity based on the quality‐specific recognition scores.