Is a supertaster a picky eater?

What is a supertaster?

“A supertaster is a person who experiences the sense of taste with far greater intensity than average, with some studies showing an increased sensitivity to bitter tastes. It may be a cause of selective eating.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supertaster” Supertasters make up about 25% of the general population; females are more likely to be supertasters than males. Ethnicity also can account for different likelihood of being a supertaster. Check out our other post for more details on supertasters.

How can I tell if I’m a supertaster?

One quick way is to buy these PROP test strips and put one on your tongue. If you don’t taste anything, then you are a “non-taster”. If you immediately taste a very strong bitterness and have to spit out the test strip, then likely you are a “super-taster”. Average or “medium-tasters” can taste the bitterness on the test strip, but it is not as intense. I’ve found that medium-tasters seem to taste some bitterness after a few seconds, sometimes increasing in bitterness intensity after another 5-10 seconds. In this other post, I explain a physical way to see if you are a supertaster along with more details on how to do more accurate test.

What kind of foods do supertasters dislike?

Because of this increased sensitivity to bitterness, many supertasters do not like certain vegetables and black coffee as the bitterness would be too overwhelming. Supertasters also have increased sensitivity to sweetness and to texture of fats. And also to the burn of spicy foods!

“Supertasters are less likely to enjoy leafy greens, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, dark chocolate, dark roast coffee, spicy peppers (capsaicin causes physical pain), creamy or especially sweet desserts.https://savoringtoday.com/its-a-matter-of-taste-supertasters-and-food-preference/” “The opposite of supertasters are non-tasters. Non-tasters have very few taste buds and, to them, most food may seem bland and unexciting.https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/super-tasting-science-find-out-if-youre-a-supertaster/”

So if I’m trying to answer the original question, my opinion would be that supertasters are not picky eaters in the sense that they aren’t willing to try new things. It’s just that they taste food differently than most other people! Their increased sensitivity to tastes will naturally limit the types of food they enjoy. If that friend or family member doesn’t love your special brussel sprouts recipe, it just may be that they are a supertaster! Don’t hate them for it!