Expert: Walter Hintz - 7/29/2008

Question
Hi
-Do human have the same biochemical system in our body, that we produce the same signal,flavour and respond from tasty food alike?

-Why do human seem to have the same agreement on "tasty" and "aweful" food? since human like to hold culinary contest? and snack are indeed tastier compared to others
-How did human biochemistry system come to a agreement over "tasty" and "awful"?since most people find egg yolk awful and "hard to savor"?
-Is there no way to define "tasty" food and "awful" food? What is a "tasty" food?
-Why are some food seem to be tastier than other food? Does "tasty food" really exist? Is there really "properties of taste" that define "delicious"?
-If all human follow the same taste properties and agree on the "properties of taste", do all human share the same biochemical system?
-Are human more attracted to "tasty food" because it is nutritious from evolution?

-How is it possible for me to know whether do I taste normally? as all I can prove is, I am able to "tell the difference between taste", but how I know I what I taste is "sweet"?

Answer
Hi Rambo:  Well you ceratinly have a lot of questions here and also some false premises.  First of all the terms "tasty" and "awful" are arbitrary and meaningless.  How do you know most people find egg yolk as awful.  Many people like egg yolks.
 Let's start with some basic facts.  There are tastes and then there are flavors.  There are only five tastes that everybody has: sweet ,sour, salty, bitter and a new one call umami.  But there are thousands of flavors and flavor is a combination of the tastes and smell.  Flavors may appear different people because the ability to taste some chemicals or not is heredity. But the fact is that preferences for certain flavors is basically learned  and depends upon past experiences. When I was boy my mother cooked liver and made me eat it.  For years I hated it but now I like it. The Inuit or Eskimos like rotten meat.  Many people hate broccoli but som elove it.
So to answer your questions: there is no agreement as to what tastes great and what does not.  It is a matter of preference and learning and how you are brought up.  A jungle child might love the taste of beetle grubs and an intuit child finds walrus eyeballs a treat but might hate a peanut butter and jelly sandwich bad.