Heighten Your 5 Senses

Use these simple tricks to get the most from your senses:

Taste

Take a good whiff of your food before you eat-90% of taste is smell. Alan Hirsch, M.D., a neurologist in Chicago, says, “The more odor molecules hit receptors in your nose, the more robust your sense of taste.

Hearing

Simply smile. The muscles that turn your frown upside down also tense your middle ear muscles. In turn, this softens low frequency noises-the hum of an air conditioner, the din of traffic, or the office chatter-by as much as 20 decibels.

Touch

Look at the body part that’s doing the touching. A British study has found that looking at the body part increases activity in the area of the brain that controls sensation. The reverse works too, look away when receiving a shot.

Sight

Position your computer monitor so you’re looking slightly looking down at it. Your eyes won’t be open as wide, so they won’t be exposed to as much cornea-drying air. That means less eye strain and blurring..hence a better vision.

Smell

Run the hot water. Before odors reach your smell receptors, they first pass through a membrane. Warm, most air helps odor dissolve into that membrane. But hurry, your heightened senses will last only a few minutes.