The Huberman Lab Podcast discusses neuroscience: how our brain and its connections with the organs of our body control our perceptions, our behaviors, and our health. We also discuss existing and emerging tools for measuring and changing how our nervous system works. Dr. Andrew Huberman is a tenured Professor of Neurobiology and Ophthalmology at Stanford School of Medicine. His laboratory studies neural regeneration, neuroplasticity, and brain states such as stress, focus, fear, and optimal performance. For more than 20 years, Dr. Huberman has consistently published original research findings and review articles in top-level peer-reviewed journals, including Nature, Science, Cell, Neuron, and Current Biology. He is a regular member of several National Institutes of Health review panels and a Fellow of the McKnight Foundation and the Pew Charitable Trusts. Dr. Huberman regularly consults for technology development companies, professional athletic organizations, and various units of U.S. and Canadian Special Operations.
Essentials: How Smell, Taste & Pheromones Shape Behavior
In this Huberman Lab Essentials episode, I explore how your sense of smell (olfaction), taste, and chemical sensing influence memory, alertness, focus, and even communication between people. I explain how these senses help us detect chemicals in the environment and respond to a variety of environmental cues. I discuss the connection between the olfactory system and cognitive performance, and I provide practical tools to enhance learning, sensory function, and brain health. Additionally, I examine how chemical signals exchanged between people subtly influence emotions, biology, and social bonds. Huberman Lab Essentials episodes are approximately 30 minutes long and focus on key science and protocol takeaways from past Huberman Lab episodes. Essentials are released every Thursday, while full-length episodes continue to air every Monday.
Read the episode show notes at hubermanlab.com.
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Timestamps
00:00:00 Huberman Lab Essentials; Smell & Taste
00:02:04 Tears, Biological Response & Communication
00:05:16 Sponsor: AG1
00:07:16 Smell, Innate vs Learned Response, Memory
00:10:31 Accessory Olfactory Pathway, Pheromones, Vandenbergh effect
00:12:42 Smell & Alertness, Smelling Salts, Tool: Nasal Breathing & Learning
00:16:06 Tool: Increase Sense of Smell
00:16:51 Sponsor: LMNT
00:18:07 Smell, Brain Health, Olfactory Neurons, Tool: Improve Smell
00:20:11 Traumatic Brain Injury & Olfactory Dysfunction
00:22:25 Smell, Alertness, Smelling Salts, Tool: Peppermint
00:24:32 Taste Modalities & Functions; Taste & Digestive System
00:30:47 Sponsor: Our Place
00:32:39 Pheromones, Coolidge Effect, Humans & Chemical Communication
00:38:44 Recap & Key Takeaways