The study aimed to assess potential effects of vaping on individual taste and smell perception in a sample of young adult New Zealanders. This cross-sectional study measured taste and smell perception using intensity and hedonic ratings to two olfactory (i.e., vanillin, methional) and two gustatory stimuli (i.e., sucrose, monosodium glutamate), representing sweet and savoury flavours. Detection sensitivities to sucrose and vanillin were also assessed using a forced choice detection paradigm aligned with the signal detection framework. MANCOVAs were employed to compare sensory perception between groups based on vaping use frequency. Additional regression analyses were conducted to identify potential predictors of intensity and hedonic sensory ratings. Participants were recruited from the University of Otago student population and surrounding neighbourhoods of Dunedin, New Zealand in 2023. The study included 213 university students (98 vapers and 115 non-vapers) We found a significant difference in hedonic ratings for vanillin, indicating a stronger preference among non-vapers. However, no other differences between the two groups were significant. Notably, the use of tobacco and mint flavours were emerged as significant predictors for hedonic responses to the savoury smell and sweet taste stimulus, respectively. No significant differences were observed between groups in the ability to detect weak stimuli. Our findings suggest that vape use, particularly with specific flavours, may be associated with alterations in hedonic responses to smells. This finding may have potential implications for how vaping affects on food preferences and dietary choices.

中文翻译：

---

电子烟会影响味觉和嗅觉吗？对新西兰年轻人的探索性研究

该研究旨在评估电子烟对新西兰年轻成年人样本的个人味觉和嗅觉的潜在影响。这项横断面研究使用代表甜味和咸味的两种嗅觉（即香草醛、甲乙醛）和两种味觉刺激（即蔗糖、谷氨酸钠）的强度和享乐评级来测量味觉和嗅觉感知。还使用与信号检测框架一致的强制选择检测范例来评估对蔗糖和香草醛的检测敏感性。MANCOVA 用于根据电子烟使用频率比较各组之间的感官知觉。进行了额外的回归分析，以确定强度和享乐感官评级的潜在预测因素。参与者是 2023 年从新西兰但尼丁奥塔哥大学学生群体和周边社区招募的。这项研究包括 213 名大学生（98 名电子烟使用者和 115 名非电子烟使用者）。我们发现香兰素的享乐评级存在显着差异，表明香草醛的享乐评级存在显着差异。非电子烟用户的偏好。然而，两组之间没有其他显着差异。值得注意的是，烟草和薄荷口味的使用分别成为对咸味和甜味刺激的享乐反应的重要预测因子。在检测微弱刺激的能力方面，各组之间没有观察到显着差异。我们的研究结果表明，电子烟的使用，尤其是特定口味的电子烟，可能与对气味的享乐反应的改变有关。这一发现可能对电子烟如何影响食物偏好和饮食选择产生潜在影响。