My picky eater challenge and how we lose our taste buds
I learn more and more about the benefits of fermented foods and our microbiome. I’ve never liked pickles and I’m trying to change that.
Every month I set ten intentions. They might be “go on a picnic” or “look at the stars every night that’s not raining or cloudy.” One of my intentions this month is to try pickles 16 times. I heard on a podcast recently that research shows we need about 16 exposures to a food to start to like it.
I tried to find the study to learn about the controls, but the most that I could find was some research specifically about children. According to Frontiers in Pediatrics, “infants and toddlers needed as many as 8–15 exposures to a particular food before they gained acceptance of that food.”
On the other end of the age spectrum, one of the many things I’ve learned managing care for aging family is that some older people forget to eat. This is not just attributed to cognitive decline. The Cleveland Clinic explains taste loss as a natural part of aging. Not only do we lose taste buds as we age, quite unpleasantly our taste buds “atrophy”. We start to lose flavor sensations. When foods don’t taste as good, we can be inclined to eat less. This also contributes to reduced appetites among the elderly.
Fermented foods and gut health
I’ve never liked pickles. Ever. A stowaway pickle on a sandwich or burger ruins my meal. (Especially if the pickle juices get absorbed in the bread. Ugh.) The smell makes me gag. Pickles make me a little dramatic. However, mounds of recent research show how important fermented foods are for our gut health and microbiome. I want to like pickles. Really. (Even though I scrunch my face in disgust as I type that.)
My husband believes that I’m a supertaster. Supertasters experience hyperbolic flavors. What may be a pleasant pickle flavor to someone might be an extreme sensory overload to a supertaster. Scientific American has a piece from about a decade ago that can help you understand if you or someone you know is a supertaster. It’s a slightly involved process that requires the help of someone you feel comfortable counting taste buds on your tongue, and adding stickers to your tongue.
Given the research that shows we need to try a particular food more than a dozen times, and that I likely have fewer taste buds now than I have at any other point of my life, I want to have an open mind that I can encourage myself to like pickles. I bought a jar of pickles and I’ve been trying pea-sized amounts—not on the same day. I’m up to attempt 3 of 16. Already I notice a change. It remains an unpleasant experience each time, but the yuckiness is less on the third attempt than the first.
My other intention this month is to eat something fermented every day. Aside from trying pickles, I’ve made kombucha, sourdough crackers and breads, kefir, and I’ve learned how to make yogurt. The latter of which has turned into my new favorite thing. I’ve been using the yogurt as is for breakfasts and snacks, and also in smoothies, tzatziki, baking, and dog treats. I highly recommend checking out this Crock Pot Yogurt recipe. It’s turning into a weekly event in my home.
I’d like to start to enjoy pickles, not just for the health benefits, but also to have more ways of preserving food from my garden and animals. Dilly beans, pickled beets and radishes, and maybe even quail eggs would be great ways of extending the life and nutrients of what we’re growing and raising.
It’s nice to have new rotations of foods to look forward to. While I’m starting my first challenge with pickles, some other foods I’m not a fan of:
Black beans
Blood oranges
Collards
Deviled eggs
Grapefruit
Olives
Is there a food you’re not a fan of? That you don’t like? Despise? Are you open to making your own picky eater challenge?