CHEMESTHESIS - PUNGENCY AS A COMPONENT OF FLAVOR

Long referred to as the 'common chemical sense' and frequently describ ed imprecisely as 'trigeminal sensitivity', chemesthesis provides the burn of chili pepper, the coolness of menthol and the tingle of carbon ation. This article is a brief overview of our current understanding o f the nature of this sensibility, including its relationship to the se nses of pain and temperature, how it interacts with taste and smell, a nd why, despite its capacity to produce pungency and pain, it is a pre valent and desirable attribute of flavor.