Why fish and chips are to be sniffed at
27 Aug 2008

Fish and chips is not only one of Britain’s favourite dishes - it is also the nation’s favourite smell, according to a study.

Britons’ judged the mouth-watering aroma of fish and chips to be even better than the scent of freshly baked bread and clean sheets.

The survey, of 3,000 people, also saw freshly cut grass, frying bacon, lemon zest and the smell of a roast dinner, in the top ten favourite smells.

Fish and chips was the overall favourite scent, but when it came to the smell that is cleanest and freshest, the majority of people rated lemon as top.

Researchers also found more than 53 per cent of people felt happy when they catched a smell of their favourite scent, while 46 per cent said it relaxes them.

Professor Tim Jacob, a scent expert at Cardiff University, said: “The sense of smell connects the deep subconscious regions of the brain and triggers different emotions and behaviours.

“For example, the aroma of food triggers a mouth-watering sensation in preparation for digestion.

“Conversely, bad smells can protect us, by warning us to stay away from something that might harm us.

“Certain feelings are evoked by scents, so lemon is traditionally associated with cleanliness and freshness, but interestingly, it also has antidepressant qualities too.”

The survey found that our most hated smell is that of public toilets. Other hated smells include body odour, bad breath, babies’ nappies and cigarettes.

The study was conducted by Finish Lemon Sparkle dishwasher products. A spokesperson for Finish said: “It’s not surprising that our national dish came out on top.”

but when it came to the smell that is cleanest and freshest, the majority of people rated lemon as top.[quote]

[quote]The study was conducted by Finish Lemon Sparkle dishwasher products.

(My wife by the way!)

Yeah, she does smell good.