Examining sensory sensitivity across age groups: Investigating beyond taste and smell
Résumé
Sensory perception varies widely among individuals, and age is a known factor that affects sensory capacity, particularly in taste and smell, which often decline with age. However, less attention has been given to the impact of age on somatosensation, which includes tactile, texture, chemesthetic, and thermal sensitivities. Therefore, our study aimed to investigate somatosensory responses across different age groups. Using objective assessments of somatosensory responses, we evaluated healthy individuals. The assessments encompassed point-pressure tactile sensitivity, food texture sensitivity (evaluating firmness, thickness, and roughness), chemesthetic sensitivity (assessing responses to menthol and capsaicin solutions), and thermal sensitivity. Participants were categorised into three age groups: under 40 yo (n=29), 40-60 yo (n=25), and 60-80 yo (n=29) for statistical comparison.ssss Our findings revealed significant differences in menthol sensitivity and roughness sensitivity across age groups. Specifically, the under 40 yo age group rated menthol solutions as significantly more intense compared to other age groups, whereas the 60-80 yo age group rated samples significantly higher in roughness. However, no significant differences were observed in other measures. In contrast to previous studies on taste and smell, we found no significant differences across age groups concerning somatosensation, except for menthol and roughness sensitivity. These findings suggest the possibility of somatosensory decline occurring later in life, for instance after 80 years old, a population not included in our study. Further investigation in this age group may provide valuable insights into the complete spectrum of age-related changes in somatosensory perception.
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