Authors: Maria Larsson¹; Lars-Göran Nilsson¹; Jonas K. Olofsson²; Steven Nordin²

Source: Chemical Senses, Volume 29, Number 6, July 2004 , pp. 547-554(8)

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Abstract:

This study investigated demographic and cognitive correlates of cued odor identification in a population-based sample from the Betula project: 1906 healthy adults varying in age from 45 to 90 years were assessed in a number of tasks tapping various cognitive domains, including cognitive speed, semantic memory and executive functioning. The results revealed a gradual and linear deterioration in cued odor identification across the adult life span. Overall, females identified more odors than men, although men and women performed at the same level in the oldest age cohort (85–90 years). Hierarchical regression analyses revealed that age, sex, education, cognitive speed and vocabulary were reliable correlates of performance in the odor identification task. In addition, age-related deficits in the included demographic and cognitive variables could not fully account for the observed age-related impairment in identification, suggesting that additional factors are underlying the observed deterioration. Likely candidates here are sensory abilities such as olfactory detection and discrimination.

Keywords: Betula project; individual differences; odor identification

Document Type: Research article

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/chemse/bjh059

Affiliations: 1: Department of Psychology, Stockholm University, S-106 91 Stockholm, Sweden, 2: Department of Psychology, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden

Publication date: 2004-07-01

More about this publication?

• Chemical Senses publishes original research and review papers on all aspects of chemoreception in both humans and animals. An important part of the journal's coverage is devoted to techniques and the development and application of new methods for investigating chemoreception and chemosensory structures.

Related content

• In this: publication
• By this: publisher
• In this Subject: Anatomy & Physiology
• By this author: Maria Larsson ;  Lars-Göran Nilsson ;  Jonas K. Olofsson ;  Steven Nordin

Website © Publishing Technology. Article copyright remains with the publisher, society or author(s) as specified within the article.

• Terms and conditions
• Privacy policy
• Information for advertisers