Inter- and intra-individual variability in oral food processing and its impact on aroma release

Aroma perception during food consumption results from the combined effects of food composition, oral processing (such as chewing and saliva action), the release and transport of volatile compounds toward the olfactory epithelium, followed by cognitive integration in the brain. Recent advances in real-time analytical techniques, particularly Proton Transfer Reaction-Time-of-Flight-Mass Spectrometry (PTR-ToF-MS), enable in vivo monitoring of aroma release with high temporal resolution and have become widely used for analyzing the composition of exhaled air. However, the interpretation of aroma release kinetics remains challenging due to substantial intra- and inter-individual variability caused by differences in physiology, anatomy, oral behavior, and respiratory patterns. In this context, the present study was designed to quantify aroma release associated with different food oral processing (FOP) mechanisms, such as chewing and swallowing, using simple model matrices containing a single aroma compound, and to document inter- and intra-individual variability among subjects. Real-time PTR-MS measurements were combined with self-reported oral events and simultaneous respiratory monitoring to analyze aroma release from aqueous solutions and gummy discs flavored with isoamyl acetate. The results showed that inter-individual variability was higher than intra-individual variability and allowed its quantification in aroma release. Significant differences in aroma release kinetics were observed depending on FOP protocols. The importance of considering swallowing events when analyzing aroma release data was also highlighted.