Study: Children with poor taste buds are more likely to become obese

Do you often feel that the food you eat is not spicy enough or flavorful enough? Do I have to add an extra spoonful of soy sauce to make it more flavorful? The taste buds on the tongue are an important basis for humans to taste the sour, sweet, bitter and spicy flavors of food. If the taste buds are not sensitive, it is difficult to taste the flavor of food. Charité University Hospital in Berlin, Germany conducted a study on the causes of childhood obesity and found that the taste buds on the tongue are a factor that causes childhood obesity. If the taste buds are not sensitive, it is easy for children to eat too much food, which makes them prone to obesity.

If the taste buds are not sensitive, the ability to distinguish the taste of food will be relatively weak, which is one of the reasons why some people always feel that they can never eat enough. (Photography by Huang Zhiwen)

Research experts believe that taste buds are mainly affected by innate genes and hormones. The study observed 94 children aged 6 to 18 whose weight was within the standard range and 99 overweight children. 22 test strips specially designed for testing taste buds were used to measure the tongue's sensitivity to taste on a scale of 5 different tastes and 4 intensities, with a full score of 20 points.

The test results found that sweetness and saltiness are the two tastes that are easiest for all children to distinguish. The most difficult to distinguish is the comparison between salty and sour. For obese children, the taste sensitivity is only 12.6 points, which is lower than the average of 14 points. Obese children also find it difficult to distinguish between salty and bitter. Generally speaking, the sense of taste matures as people grow older, but obese children do not have normal taste bud receptors, which means they have to eat more than the average person to satisfy their taste buds, which naturally leads to obesity.