WEBVTT - Why Does Hot Food Seem More Satisfying?

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to brain Stuff from how Stuff Works. Hey, brain Stuff,

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<v Speaker 1>Lauren vocal bam. Here. You know that ravenously hungry feeling

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<v Speaker 1>you get after going swimming. It feels like you could

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<v Speaker 1>go to and All you can Eat buffet and make

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<v Speaker 1>them rethink their business strategy. But although a salad or

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<v Speaker 1>a granola bar, or even a nice smoothie would probably

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<v Speaker 1>satisfy you, a voice echoing out of the deepest recesses

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<v Speaker 1>of your brain commands you defeat it something warm, an

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<v Speaker 1>entire pizza, perhaps, or two giant bowls of extra brisket please.

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<v Speaker 1>There could be a lot of reasons why we crave

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<v Speaker 1>warm foods when we're especially hungry, but what of them

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<v Speaker 1>probably has to do with the link between smell and taste.

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<v Speaker 1>We spoke with Dr Stephen Secker, an associate professor in

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<v Speaker 1>the University of Alabama Department of Biological Sciences who studies

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<v Speaker 1>the physiological design of digestive systems. He said, hot food

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<v Speaker 1>emanates much more airborne particles than cold foods, and since

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<v Speaker 1>a large part of our taste sensation also involves smell

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<v Speaker 1>hot food, would they or for provide positive reinforcement in

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<v Speaker 1>its selection? Just consider how quickly the smell of smoke

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<v Speaker 1>from a barbecue can make you feel hungry or how

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<v Speaker 1>no matter how tasty it will be, a cold gaspacho

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<v Speaker 1>simply doesn't stimulate the senses like a warm chili. So

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<v Speaker 1>even though we intellectually know that cold soup is going

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<v Speaker 1>to be good and fill us up, our olfactory apparatus

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<v Speaker 1>hasn't yet been appraised of the situation, making it hard

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<v Speaker 1>to get all the parts of the brain on the

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<v Speaker 1>same gaspacho bandwagon. But smell may not be the only

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<v Speaker 1>reason we crave a hot meal more than a cold one,

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<v Speaker 1>or rather, it may signal a deeper reason. Since heating

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<v Speaker 1>food unlocks calories and nutrients we wouldn't be able to

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<v Speaker 1>get eating the food raw, and since our big brains

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<v Speaker 1>are very calorie meaty, our preference for hot meals might

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<v Speaker 1>have something to do with our brains steering us towards

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<v Speaker 1>the most potential calories possible in the moment of hunger.

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<v Speaker 1>According to Richard Rangum, a biological anthropologist at Harvard and

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<v Speaker 1>author of Catching Fire, How Cooking Made Us Human, the

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<v Speaker 1>important comparison is between foods that are cooked and differ

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<v Speaker 1>only in temperature. He said, hot food very likely yields

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<v Speaker 1>more net energy gain than cold food, partly because of

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<v Speaker 1>changes in digestibility. One example is that starch becomes increasingly

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<v Speaker 1>refractory after hot bread than cools, which could be one

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<v Speaker 1>reason why we like hot toast. In the case of

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<v Speaker 1>lipid rich foods, the closer of fat is to its

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<v Speaker 1>melting point when eaten probably the easier it is digested. However,

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<v Speaker 1>Succor clarifies that chewing and the digestive process are both

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<v Speaker 1>pretty good at unlocking nutrients. He said that once you've

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<v Speaker 1>cooked hamburger, for example, eating it hot or cold would

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<v Speaker 1>provide a negligible difference in calories consumed and digestion effort.

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<v Speaker 1>But there's also the nostalgia factor. Smell is the most

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<v Speaker 1>nostalgia triggering sense. Researchers aren't entirely sure why this is,

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<v Speaker 1>but they think it has to do with the physical

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<v Speaker 1>way our brains handle information in the parts known as

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<v Speaker 1>the limbic system. The limbic system includes the amygdala, which

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<v Speaker 1>helps us process emotions, the hippocampus, which processes and stores memories,

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<v Speaker 1>and the olfactory bulb, which processes scent input from our

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<v Speaker 1>nasal cavity. There are direct connections among these three brain bits.

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<v Speaker 1>Studies have shown that sense create more positive and more

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<v Speaker 1>emotional senses of nostalgia than other triggers, and scientists think

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<v Speaker 1>that's because of these close connections amongst scent, emotion, and

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<v Speaker 1>memory in our brains. While there might be some selected

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<v Speaker 1>drive hidden in our behavior to crave cooked food for

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<v Speaker 1>nutritional gains, are cravings, and our susceptibility to a rich

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<v Speaker 1>scent in the air is very likely driven by a

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<v Speaker 1>nice memory of the taste and smell of food right

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<v Speaker 1>off the grill, or the chicken soup that comforted you

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<v Speaker 1>when you were sick as a child. However, even small

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<v Speaker 1>changes in temperature can make a big difference in how

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<v Speaker 1>satisfaction and food is perceived. It's important to remember that

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<v Speaker 1>the texture of foods, and especially fats like those in

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<v Speaker 1>cheese and cheese substitutes, changes drastically within a relatively small

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<v Speaker 1>temperature range. For example, cold pizza, delight, or horror discuss

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<v Speaker 1>h Today's episode was written by Jesselyn Shields and produced

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<v Speaker 1>by Tyler Clang. For more on this and lots of

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<v Speaker 1>other savory topics, visit our home planet, how Stuff Works

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<v Speaker 1>dot com.