The world's population is aging and older adults represent the fastest growing segment of the consumer market. Changes in sensory, perceptual and cognitive function in this segment of the population have been described psychophysically, however, more is known about the young-old than the old-old or oldest-old. Only now are we exploring the potential for neuroimaging tools to probe the changes in central nervous system function related to taste and smell that are relevant to sensory perception, reward value, anticipation of and consumption of food stimuli. There is real potential for brain imaging to provide a greater understanding of older adults’ consumer behavior.

世界人口正在老龄化，老年人代表了消费市场增长最快的部分。在心理上已经描述了这一部分人群的感觉，知觉和认知功能的变化，但是，对于年老的人比对年老的人或最年长的人了解更多。直到现在，我们仍在探索神经影像工具的潜力，以探测与味觉和嗅觉有关的中枢神经系统功能的变化，这些变化与感官知觉，奖励价值，对食物刺激的预期和消耗有关。大脑成像具有真正的潜力，可以使人们对老年人的消费行为有更深入的了解。