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The Super Taster vs. Taster vs. Non-Taster
Debate
The theory here is that there are some
of us that can't enjoy the subtleties of food because of
lack of a concentration of papillae on the tongue which
contain taste buds.
| Fungiform Papillae Count* |
% of U.S. population* |
Category* |
Wes' Extrapolation |
Fewer than
15 papillae |
25% |
non-taster |
Eats raw chilies, salts everything
before tasting it |
Between
15-35 papillae |
50% |
taster |
Enjoys a huge variety of
foods. |
| Over 35 papillae |
15% |
super-taster |
Picky eater as a child. Likes
blander foods. |
*From US reseach led by Professor Linda
Bartoshuk.
The other interesting things about the super-taster
findings are that super-tasters...
- feel more pain from tongue lesions
- sense fat in food more readily
- may avoid cancer-preventing vegetables and
fruits because they taste too bitter to them
- Asians have a greater proportion of tasters
and supertasters (no great surprise)
- 35% of female Caucasians are supertasters,
10% of male Caucasians, ergo the popularity of chains in
the Midwest
- Less likely to become alcoholics
However, I think that some people just don't
enjoy foods that are at all bitter, whether they are super-tasters
or non-tasters. I can remember my first sip of a beer and
how bitter it tasted; now it's actually too sweet for me
to enjoy. There's also the smell factor, which is particularly
true with organ meats (the "wet dog" smell) and
some pickled or salted foods.
Here's
an excellent
article on super-tasters
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