Tasteless in Illinois

[ksmith]

Taken from Maureen McHugh's blog, maureenmch.

What level of taster are you?

I'm a Non-Taster, which is a little disappointing. I knew I wasn't a Super-Taster, but I thought I at least ranked as average.

Comments

[just-shai.livejournal.com]

Heh, they couldn't categorize me....

[juliabk.livejournal.com]

Interesting. They called me a supertaster. I don't know if that's completely true or not, though. I do know I dislike bitter flavors. Coffee needs chocolate (though there was that one kona blend I had a bit of that was incredible ;-) and I've only been able to tolerate even that in the past couple of years. Brussel sprouts - just no. Spinach needs other stuff with it, even if it's just hot sauce. Cabbage I can take or leave, and prefer to leave. Grapefruit requires lots of sugar, but then I love it. I do have lots of foods I actively dislike, but I learned to eat them without making a fuss a long time ago (though turnips still make me gag). I also learned 'gracious avoidance' at an early age... survival instinct, y'know. :-) 'Picky' eaters are simply not tolerated in my family.

[juliabk.livejournal.com]

Reading up on the chemical cited in the article is interesting. Apparently, those who can taste 6-n-propylthiouracil are also sensitive to the taste of caffeine. I know I can't stand the taste of decaff Coke - it just tastes wrong. I've also had people snarking at me for years for refusing the pre-sweetened ice tea that's common in some places down here but then sweetening it myself. I don't want it sweet, I'm always just trying to kill the bitterness.

[kristine-smith.livejournal.com]

To me, presweetened iced tea is just too danged sweet. I also find most processed foods too danged salty.

[juliabk.livejournal.com]

Same here. On both counts.

[dancinghorse.livejournal.com]

I came down as a supertaster, which I know I'm not. I like all the foods on the supertasters' ick list. What the test really tests, at least for me, is whether a person is a foodie. That, I tend to be.

[juliabk.livejournal.com]

I think that's the point, though. Foodies tend to be the ones who *do* have sensitive tastebuds. Or a lot of them, as they mentioned. Do you eat those foods as is or do you doctor them in some way?

[torrilin.livejournal.com]

You could well be a supertaster and like many or all of the "ick" foods. It's a matter of how many taste buds you have and whether you got certain genes... what you do with it is largely determined by personality.

[kristine-smith.livejournal.com]

I love food, and I enjoy going out. I don't think I'm as tone deaf as the test makes me appear. I notice what I think of as good. But when I'm out with friends, I'm Out With Friends. Unless we're out on a particular food safari, it's about more than just the food.

[juliabk.livejournal.com]

I think you're on to something. I was using as my 'template' the times I go to lunch with my coworkers. Not quite the same as meeting up with you once every couple of years for a meal, or even meeting up with a local friend several times over the course of a year. At work, we're almost always going out *to* *eat*. With friends, you're often eating *with* *friends*. :-) Changes a lot.

[torrilin.livejournal.com]

Not real scientifically done. They're registering me as a supertaster, and based on the actual taste bud count on my tongue, I'm not. I'm a *trained* taster, with a couple "lucky" genetic quirks so I'm sensitive to the taste of a number of odd chemicals.

What that test is designed to root out is picky eaters, because if you're dealing with someone who didn't get taste testing training, picky eating as an adult tends to correlate well with being a supertaster. Not all picky eaters are supertasters tho. And not all supertasters are picky eaters. My dad and I think at least one of my sibs are supertasters and well... they eat pretty much anything.

[juliabk.livejournal.com]

Yeah, the test as given isn't really what it claims to be. But it's an interesting thingy, no matter what.

[alfreda89.livejournal.com]

The site is currently overwhelmed, but I know I'm a supertaser -- I have to refridgerate oil because it turns too fast for me. And broccoli a day past prime is NASTY.....

Don't get me started about cilantro, cauliflower and Brussels sprouts.

And now with the meds, argh!

Speaking of argh, I need to take meds...