In an interview at The Smithsonian, evolutionary biologist Jason Cryan explained why humans generally have predisposition to sweet foods and a disinterest in bitter foods:
Cryan also notes that all animals that have been tested favor sweet foods -- except for cats. Cats may have lost the ability to taste sweet foods due to a wholly carnivorous diet.
Link | Photo: US Department of Health and Human Services
The evolutionary explanation for the sweet tooth revolved around that idea that we have physiologically associated a sweet taste with high-energy foods which would have helped our earliest ancestors survive better in their environment (getting more “bang-for-the-buck”….if an individual has to spend time and effort foraging for food, it’s better to obtain energy-dense food items than energy-poor food items). When one considers our ability to taste, our ability to perceive “sweet” is relatively weak, while our ability to perceive “bitter” is generally considered much stronger (in fact, the strongest of our taste reception, on average). Perception of “bitter” is thought to be an evolutionary strategy of quickly identifying plants that contain potentially harmful toxins (produced as secondary plant compounds). Thus, evolving a low tolerance to “bitter” and a high tolerance to “sweet”‘ might have promoted our ancestors to actively seek out sweet tasting foods.
Cryan also notes that all animals that have been tested favor sweet foods -- except for cats. Cats may have lost the ability to taste sweet foods due to a wholly carnivorous diet.
Link | Photo: US Department of Health and Human Services
Comments (7)
Me on the other hand... I can't resist sweets.
Anecdote, data, I know I know.
Anyhow, I'm a huge fan of old non-fiction and Google Books is one of my favorite spots to peruse.
It really is a GREAT deal to have all these classic PopSci issues available for easy browsing! For years both my father and I were Popular Science subscribers. I finally canned it about 10 years ago when the magazine really degenerated and adopted a "jam anything & everything green down your throat editorial policy" ... They've basically morphed into Popular One-Sided Left Wing Science and the science is particulary weak these days. Of course, they were never as egg-heady as Scientific American (itself a disaster today for the same reasons... quite a shame) but they did focus on emerging technology and generally presented a neutral political stance and objective editorial policy. Well, those days are long gone.
But at least we can look back on these old classics that aimed to teach people and present alternate views on future technology. Good stuff, but sad how far things have fallen with them.
Thank you!
sincerely, Norma E. Mizer
I'm trying to find the issue that had the plans for a gas engine powered model airplane called "Miss Sicence" or "Miss Scientific" Around 1941,1942 or 1943.
Thanks
Charlie Calvert