How the Brain Creates flavour

Gordon M. Shepherd, professor of neurobiology at the Yale School of Medicine, has spent a lifetime researching the brain mechanisms involved in olfaction (our sense of smell) and its impact on flavor perception in the brain. His new book is “Neurogastronomy: How the Brain Creates Flavor and Why It Matters,” out this month from Columbia University Press. Shepherd’s work is anchored in a burgeoning field within neuroscience — figuring out the mysteries behind our olfactory system, the ways in which smells are represented and processed in the brain.


http://www.amazon.com/Neurogastronomy-Brain-Creates-Flavor-Matters/dp/0231159102/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1324456872&sr=8-1

Flavour and Fragrances

The Scare: Certain groups say fragrances contain irritants, allergens, hormone disrupters, and toxic chemicals that cause everything from reproductive problems to cancer to neurological disorders.

Origin of the Scare: Products in the U.S. aren’t required to list the exact fragrance ingredients they contain. (But a list of almost all compounds used as fragrances — 3,194 ingredients in all — is publicly available.) Advocacy groups want products to list exact ingredients, claiming many fragrances are dangerous. In June, a new version of the Safe Cosmetics Act returned to Congress, which calls for the listing of all ingredients in products.

Bottom Line: When used as directed there’s no evidence exposure to chemicals in flavours and fragrances are harmful. 

'Frankincense is not a monster' - the Simpsons

Essentia