Are there foods that you wished you enjoyed but you just don’t like them? Not because they make you feel unwell but because you don’t like the taste. Does your child refuse foods because of the taste?
Some foods that have strong tastes are very good for us and if they have not been included as part of our diet, we naturally find the taste unpleasant, sometimes even horrible.
This is definitely the case for me with olives. I never ate them as a child and if I try them now, it is a struggle to actually chew it up and swallow it. But olives are very very good for us and people who like them seem to LOVE them. I would like to love olives.
The average adult has around 10,000 taste buds, most of which are on the tongue. Some are also situated on the roof of the mouth and in the throat as well. Their numbers and sensitivity decline with age. So a baby or child has a very acute sense of taste, however the taste buds of an elderly person will generally be diminished. This is something to keep in mind when preparing food for different age groups. Babies and children will tasted those fresh, natural flavours from whole foods very strongly as long as their taste buds are not trained by additives from processed foods.
Much of our taste comes from our sense of smell; up to 80%. The senses of smell and taste are very connected and both go straight to the emotional part of the brain, called the limbic system. This is why the taste or smell of a particular food can instantly take you back to a time and place and evoke a strong emotional response. For this reason, positive experiences and healthy foods are very beneficial partners.
Consider the importance of :
- calm meal times
- humour and positive communication around the dinner table
- food prepared with love
Try the taste bud challenge!
The great thing about taste buds as I have mentioned in other articles and in my cookbooks is that they are trainable. You can teach your buds to like particular foods. All that is needed is will and perseverance. If you would like your child to enjoy a particular healthy food, try making it a game. A taste bud challenge! Each member of the family picks a food they don’t really like and has a small try of it every day.
Here are some guidelines to encourage success:
- Do this with a friend or family member – the whole family is even better.
- To start off with, eat your sample with a food you like. For example, if you don’t like bitter greens, eat your daily leaf with a piece of pumpkin or other sweet vegetable. This is a way to pacify the strength of the taste.
- Make sure you do not choose a food that you are intolerant to. If you dislike a food because it makes you feel sick or gives you a headache, there is probably a good reason for you to avoid it.
- Share your results on my FB page. I would love to know how you go and it is always encouraging to see others meeting a challenge as well.
