Olfaction scaffolds the developing human from neonate to adolescent and beyond

Author:

Schaal Benoist1ORCID,Saxton Tamsin K.2,Loos Hélène34,Soussignan Robert1,Durand Karine1

Affiliation:

1. Developmental Ethology and Cognitive Psychology Laboratory, Centre des Sciences du Goût, UMR 6265 CNRS-Université de Bourgogne Franche-Comté, Inra-AgroSup, Dijon, France

2. Department of Psychology, Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK

3. Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Erlangen, Germany

4. Department of Sensory Analytics, Fraunhofer Institute for Process Engineering and Packaging IVV, Freising, Germany

Abstract

The impact of the olfactory sense is regularly apparent across development. The fetus is bathed in amniotic fluid (AF) that conveys the mother's chemical ecology. Transnatal olfactory continuity between the odours of AF and milk assists in the transition to nursing. At the same time, odours emanating from the mammary areas provoke appetitive responses in newborns. Odours experienced from the mother's diet during breastfeeding, and from practices such as pre-mastication, may assist in the dietary transition at weaning. In parallel, infants are attracted to and recognize their mother's odours; later, children are able to recognize other kin and peers based on their odours. Familiar odours, such as those of the mother, regulate the child's emotions, and scaffold perception and learning through non-olfactory senses. During juvenility and adolescence, individuals become more sensitive to some bodily odours, while the timing of adolescence itself has been speculated to draw from the chemical ecology of the family unit. Odours learnt early in life and within the family niche continue to influence preferences as mate choice becomes relevant. Olfaction thus appears significant in turning on, sustaining and, in cases when mother odour is altered, disturbing adaptive reciprocity between offspring and carer during the multiple transitions of development between birth and adolescence. This article is part of the Theo Murphy meeting issue ‘Olfactory communication in humans’.

Funder

Conseil régional de Bourgogne-Franche-Comté

Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique

Agence Nationale de la Recherche

Publisher

The Royal Society

Subject

General Agricultural and Biological Sciences,General Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology

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