Dec
2018
F
Feature
A matter of
PERSONAL
TASTES
A patient’s taste profile might hold the key
to developing a tailored dietary plan
T
ASTE occurs when taste receptor cells in
taste buds on the tongue, soft palate and
the oropharyngeal and gastrointestinal
regions are stimulated and activated.
There are five recognised tastes: sweet, salty,
bitter, sour, and umami (savoury), but recently
researchers demonstrated there was a sixth, fat. 1
It’s thought the human taste mechanism
evolved to ensure we consume essential
nutrients while avoiding harmful foods.
Umami flavours may indicate the presence of
proteins; salty tastes may signal minerals; sour,
tart flavours could mean a food is rancid; bitter
tastes often indicate poisons, and sweet taste
equals carbohydrates and energy. 2
So what’s new in taste research?
Sweet
Humans have an innate drive to eat sweet foods,
possibly from infancy, as breastmilk is sweet. In
addition we may have evolved this way because
sweet foods may have been safer.
Now, of course, the overconsumption of
sweet, energy-dense foods and beverages is a
major contributor to rates of overweight
and obesity. 2
Sugars and other sweeteners are perceived
as sweet because they bind to sweet taste
receptors in the oral cavity. 3
Yet these receptors are also present
throughout the body, including the gut,
pancreas, brain, bone and adipose tissue,
suggesting a role in metabolism regulation. 4
Overexposure to sweet tastes, however, may
not necessarily lead to a sweet-taste preference,
at least in the short term, as first thought. 5,6
It’s not clear yet if artificial sweeteners can
trick oral taste buds but when no energy is
registered, satiety mechanisms are not
activated, and hunger continues, resulting
in overconsumption and weight gain. 7-10
Umami
First discovered in 1908 but not accepted by the
scientific community until 1985, umami relates
to the ability to taste glutamates commonly
found in meat and fermented foods.
Umami means a “pleasant savoury taste”
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