...cancer. People who are picky eaters aren't necessarily being rude or difficult. They are probably supertasters. That's the name Yale University experimental psychologist Linda Bartoshuk has given to people whose taste buds are so strong they are ultra-sensitive to bitter-tasting foods, reports New Scientist and Reuters. Supertasters, who make up as much as 25 percent of the population, detect bitter flavors in broccoli, chocolate, and coffee that others never knew were there. So supertasters don't eat these foods.
Supertasters live in a "neon taste world," compared to the rest of us who inhabit a "pastel world," explains Bartoshuk. Supertasting seems to have evolved to detect bitter-tasting poisons, while those of us with less sensitive taste buds evolved so we could grow healthier by enjoying a wider range of food. The problem is that supertasters do more than annoy their mothers and offend their dinner party hosts. Because they don't want to eat their spinach and Brussels sprouts, they're not getting enough of those all-important cancer-fighting veggies. "Supertasters who don't like bitter foods are at risk by avoiding some anti-cancer foods," Bartoshuk told reporters at the American Association for the Advancement of Science. And that could lead to a higher incidence of cancer among picky eaters.
Supertasters, who are already known to have a higher risk of gynecological cancers, may also have a higher risk of colon cancer. Very preliminary results from a study of colonoscopies of 200 older men conducted by Bartoshuk and Dr. Marc Basson of Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan showed that men who ate fewer vegetables were heavier and had more cancerous polyps in their colon. Colorectal cancer is the fourth leading cause of cancer-related death in the world. Our sense of taste isn't something we can change. It's genetic. And how we taste determines what we eat. "What you like to eat determines your diet, and your diet is a risk factor for all kinds of diseases," Bartoshuk explained to United Press International.
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