Smell of coffee offers same buzz as a shot, says Monash University research

Next time someone says “wake up and smell the coffee”, they might be on the right track, as new research has found a whiff of the beans can be almost as effective as a shot of espresso for a pick-me-up.

The next time someone says “wake up and smell the coffee”, a sniff might be all you really need.

New research has found that a whiff of coffee can be almost as effective as an espresso shot.

Eugene Chan of Monash University says coffee drinkers are conditioned to respond to the smell, similar to the Pavlov’s dog theory.

“Mere exposure to coffee-related cues might trigger arousal in and of themselves without ingesting any form of caffeine,” Dr Chan said.

WHY OUR COFFEE TASTES DIFFERENT IN EACH SUBURB

MAGIC, PICCOLO COFFEES ON THE RISE IN MELBOURNE

RICHMOND CAFE HAS PENFOLDS GRANGE OF COFFEE

“So walking past your favourite cafe, smelling the odours of coffee grounds or even witnessing coffee-related cues in the form of advertising can trigger the chemical receptors in our body enough for us to obtain the same arousal sensations without consumption,” he said.

Caitlyn savours the aromas of coffee beans. Picture: Jake Nowakowski

For the project, conducted with the University of Toronto, 871 coffee and tea drinkers from Western and Eastern cultures were assessed for their reactions to cues such as exposing them to images or coffee smells and sounds,

Coffee drinkers showed increased alertness, energy, heart rate and focus.

Managing director of Melbourne coffee institution Brunetti, Fabio Angele, said aromas were an essential part of the experience.

“The smell comes from the grinding rather than the roasting,’’ Mr Angele said.

“It doesn’t get any better than that freshly ground smell. It’s pretty addictive.”

Originally published as Smell of coffee offers same buzz as a shot, says Monash University research