2009, Number 3
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Residente 2009; 4 (3)
La contaminación del aire deteriora la función olfativa cotidiana en residentes de la ciudad de México
Guarneros M, Hudson R
Language: Spanish
References: 20
Page: 81-86
PDF size: 136.83 Kb.
ABSTRACT
Little is known about the effect of big city air pollution on olfactory function. Using everyday food-related odorants we compared the olfactory performance of residents of Mexico City, a region with high air pollution, with the performance of a control population from the Mexican state of Tlaxcala, a geographically comparable but less polluted region. Using psychophysical methodology, we compared the ability of thirty young adults from each location to detect and describe the odor of milk, of dimethyl disulfide as a common contaminant of milk, and to detect the presence of this contaminant when added to milk. The subjects from Mexico City detected and described the odorants at significantly higher concentrations than the control subjects from Tlaxcala, and they detected and negatively judged milk containing dimethyl disulfide at significantly higher concentrations of the contaminant than the Tlaxcala subjects. We conclude that the observed impairment of olfactory function caused by air pollution is relevant in every-day situations such as evaluating the quality of food before ingestion.
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