Aversive agent

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Aversive agents are unpleasantly flavored substances added to poisonous household goods to discourage children and animals from consuming poisonous household products. Aversive agents are not intended to be harmful, only unpleasant. For example, to prevent children from consuming poisonous anti-freeze, which has a sweet flavor due to the ethylene glycol, an aversive agent is added, which gives the anti-freeze an unpleasant taste. There are two primary classes of aversive agents: bitterants, chemicals producing a bitter flavor, and pungent agents, chemicals producing an unpleasantly pungent flavor. [1]

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A food flavoring, also known as an aromatic, is a food additive used to improve the taste or smell of food. It changes the perceptual impression of food as determined primarily by the chemical senses of the gustatory and olfactory system. The trigeminal nerves, which detect chemical irritants in the mouth and throat, as well as temperature and texture, are also important to the overall perception of food.

Capsaicin Pungent chemical compound in chili peppers

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Sodium chloride Chemical compound with formula NaCl

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Denatured alcohol Ethanol with additives to discourage recreational consumption

Denatured alcohol is ethanol that has additives to make it poisonous, bad-tasting, foul-smelling, or nauseating to discourage its recreational consumption. It is sometimes dyed so that it can be identified visually. Pyridine and methanol, each and together, make denatured alcohol poisonous; and denatonium makes it bitter.

Retsina Greek wine

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Soy milk Beverage made from soyabeans

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Denatonium Chemical compound

Denatonium, usually available as denatonium benzoate and as denatonium saccharide (BITTERANT-s), is the most bitter chemical compound known, with bitterness thresholds of 0.05 ppm for the benzoate and 0.01 ppm for the saccharide. It was discovered in 1958 during research on local anesthetics by MacFarlan Smith of Edinburgh, Scotland, and registered under the trademark Bitrex.

Food browning Food process

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In psychology, aversives are unpleasant stimuli that induce changes in behavior via negative reinforcement or positive punishment. By applying an aversive immediately before or after a behavior the likelihood of the target behavior occurring in the future is reduced. Aversives can vary from being slightly unpleasant or irritating to physically, psychologically and/or emotionally damaging. It is not the level of unpleasantness or intention that matter, but rather the level of effectiveness the unpleasant event has on changing (decreasing) behavior that defines something as aversive.

Kilju Alcoholic beverage

Kilju is the Finnish word for fermented water. It is made of sugar, yeast, and water. Historically it used to be called sugar wine because it was sweetened with toppings such as citrus fruits, apples, berry juices, or artificial flavorings for legal reasons. Its alcohol content is usually 15–17% ABV.

Coffee bean Seed of the coffee plant

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Allyl isothiocyanate Chemical compound

Allyl isothiocyanate (AITC) is the organosulfur compound with the formula CH2CHCH2NCS. This colorless oil is responsible for the pungent taste of mustard, radish, horseradish, and wasabi. This pungency and the lachrymatory effect of AITC are mediated through the TRPA1 and TRPV1 ion channels. It is slightly soluble in water, but more soluble in most organic solvents.

Quick bread Bread leavened with leavening agents other than yeast or eggs

Quick bread is any bread leavened with a chemical leavening agent rather than a biological one like yeast or sourdough starter. An advantage of quick breads is their ability to be prepared quickly and reliably, without requiring the time-consuming skilled labor and the climate control needed for traditional yeast breads.

Soured milk

Soured milk denotes a range of food products produced by the acidification of milk. Acidification, which gives the milk a tart taste, is achieved either through bacterial fermentation or through the addition of an acid, such as lemon juice or vinegar. The acid causes milk to coagulate and thicken, inhibiting the growth of harmful bacteria and improving the product's shelf life.

The al-Abud Network is a former insurgent group who was operating within Iraq during the Iraq War. First reported in the "Comprehensive Report of the Special Advisor to the DCI on Iraq's WMD", the group is alleged to have attempted to acquire chemical weapons for use in fighting against Coalition Forces.

A bitterant is a chemical that is added to a product to make it smell or taste bitter. Bitterants are commonly used as aversive agents to discourage the inhalation or ingestion of toxic substances.

Instant soup

Instant soup is a type of soup designed for fast and simple preparation. Some are homemade, and some are mass-produced on an industrial scale and treated in various ways to preserve them. A wide variety of types, styles and flavors of instant soups exist. Commercial instant soups are usually dried or dehydrated, canned, or treated by freezing.

A bittering agent is a flavoring agent added to a food or beverage to impart a bitter taste, possibly in addition to other effects. While many substances are bitter to a greater or lesser degree, a few substances are used specifically for their bitterness, especially to balance other flavors, such as sweetness. Notable beverage examples include caffeine, found naturally in tea and coffee and added to many soft drinks, hops in beer, and quinine in tonic water.

The word denature means to render food unpleasant or dangerous to consume, it is denatured by adding a substance known as a denaturant. Aversive agents—primarily bitterants and pungent agents—are used to produce an unpleasant flavor. For example, the bitterant denatonium might be added to food used in a laboratory, where such food is not intended for human consumption. A poisonous substance may be added as an even more powerful deterrent. For example, methanol is blended with ethanol to produce denatured alcohol. The addition of methanol, which is poisonous, renders denatured alcohol unfit for consumption, as ingesting denatured alcohol may result in serious injury or death. Thus denatured alcohol is not subject to the taxes usually levied on the production and sale of alcoholic beverages. Aniline was used to denature colza oil in the 1980s.

Pungency Sharp smell or flavor

Pungency is the condition of having a strong, sharp smell or flavor. It refers to the characteristic of food commonly referred to as spiciness, hotness or heat, found in foods such as chili peppers. Highly pungent tastes may be experienced as unpleasant.

References

  1. Final Report Study of Aversive Agents (PDF). Consumer Product Safety Commission United States of America. 18 November 1992. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 June 2011. Retrieved 15 November 2010.