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Why doesn't food taste good on the Space Station?

2024-08-22 19:15:00, Kuriozitete CNA

Why doesn't food taste good on the Space Station?

Illustrative photo

Some astronauts emphasize this: the food in space is often tasteless, a somewhat curious phenomenon that can turn into a serious problem for the health of the astronauts themselves on the International Space Station, endangering their intake of nutrients.

The old hypothesis. Previous research had suggested that this problem was related to changes in body fluids due to microgravity. However, many astronauts have reported that these "taste" problems persist even when the effects of microgravity subside.

This has led some scientists to hypothesize that it may be the isolated and unpleasant environment of space missions that negatively affects taste perception.

To investigate this hypothesis, a group of researchers conducted an innovative study, published in the International Journal of Food Science & Technology, using virtual reality (VR) to simulate the environment of the International Space Station (ISS). The participants, 54 people between the ages of 18 and 39, were exposed to three common food flavors (vanilla, almond and lemon) in two different contexts: a neutral environment and a VR simulation of the ISS.

The results of the study showed that the perception of vanilla and almond aromas was significantly more intense in the simulated environment of the ISS compared to the neutral context. This finding is particularly interesting because it suggests that the environment can influence the perception of odors, especially for certain specific odorant compounds. Chemical analysis of volatile compounds, performed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC-MS), pointed out that benzaldehyde, a compound present in both vanilla and almond, may be responsible for the greater intensity with which smells when you are in the virtual reality simulation. In contrast, the lemon scent did not show significant differences between the two contexts, suggesting that some olfactory perceptions may be less influenced by the surrounding environment.

This study not only provides new insights into sensory perception in space environments, but may also have practical implications for improving astronaut diets.

Knowing that certain smells are perceived more intensely in a closed environment could lead to the development of more palatable foods for space missions.

Furthermore, the importance of this research goes beyond space exploration. The study may in fact offer solutions to other situations of isolation and confinement, such as those experienced by seniors in nursing homes or by soldiers on mission./ CNA