Color Smell and Taste

In fact, a lot of what we perceive as flavor comes from odor molecules that float up to our smell receptors through our mouths. And as with taste, studies have shown the visual cues we get from color help us identify smells more quickly and accurately. In fact, one 1981 study found that the source of a smell doesn't have to be the corresponding color. The color and odor just sort of need to be in the same place. Like, the author of this study found that if an odor was presented along with colored words or patches, subjects could identify it faster and more accurately than odors presented with inappropriate color cues. So as an example, the smell of lemon would likely be easier to identify in a yellow room than in a pink room. Which sounds strange. But what all this research adds up to is very clear evidence that color influences our perception of smell and taste. What's less clear is why this happens. Scientists have not nailed down one single answer, but there are a few possibilities. The first is that the appearance of food or drinks produces what some researchers call an expectancy-based effect. Basically the color of something tells you what to expect, and your expectation is actually enough to overpower reality and influence the way you identify a taste or smell. This idea is similar to the placebo effect, where people's beliefs about a treatment actually change the symptoms they experience. Another way color could influence how we identify a flavor or smell is by directing our attention.