The Effect of Cigarette Smoking on Chemosensory Perceptionof Common Beverages

Introduction

This study aimed to determine whether a smoking restriction prior to sensory evaluation affects sensory perception and liking of beverages that represent sweetness (sweetened cocoa), saltiness (vegetable juice), sourness (orange juice), and bitterness (black coffee).

Methods

Smokers were asked to either abstain from smoking for 2 h or to smoke a cigarette 5 min prior to sensory evaluation of beverages. As a control, non-smokers participated in this study.

Results

Smokers who smoked 5 min prior to tasting beverages rated black coffee as significantly more bitter than did those who either abstained from smoking for 2 h or non-smokers. No effect of cigarette smoking was found either in intensity of other taste qualities and flavor or in the liking of the four types of beverages.

Conclusion

This study provides empirical evidence that cigarette smokers should abstain from smoking for 2 h prior to sensory evaluation of bitter-tasting beverages such as black coffee.