Habits That are Bad for Your Sense of Taste

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Habits That are Bad for Your Sense of Taste

Because of your taste buds, eating is made enjoyable. These clusters of globular nerve endings lining the surface of your tongue are what make you appreciate the several different flavors of food. Simply imagine how boring each mealtime would be without them!

There are certain habits that are actually bad for your sense of taste. Whether you love cooking or eating — or both — they can definitely take away the fun in what you enjoy doing the most. Read on to know what they are so you may start steering clear of them pronto.

Eating Too Much

Overeating can leave a dent on your taste buds. This terrible habit oftentimes leads to obesity, something that can keep you from identifying various flavors, according to a study conducted back in 2012. The study found out that obese individuals were less likely to precisely identify various tastes than people who had ideal weight.

Cigarette Smoking

This habit is not only bad for your lungs and heart, but also the taste buds. Some of the chemicals in cigarette smoke can irritate the taste buds and even decrease their sensitivity to taste. In addition, smoking can also cause irritation and blockage of the nasal passages, and this can considerably lower your ability to perceive taste.

Consuming Lots of Sugar

Here’s a good reason why you should not overindulge your sweet tooth: experts say that eating or drinking anything that contains tons of sugar can keep your taste buds from perceiving flavors optimally. Another bad thing about this habit is it lowers your sugar enjoyment while actually craving more of it. Consuming anything with a lot of sugar is not only bad for your taste buds, but also your figure and overall health.

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Having Tons of Salty Foods

It’s no secret that the consumption of excessive amounts of salt is bad for the cardiovascular system. But did you know that your sense of taste can also suffer from excessive intake of salty foods? That’s because too much salt can cause the taste buds to perceive saltiness less efficiently, and this requires you to add more salt just to enjoy what you’re eating. Aside from limiting the amount of salt when cooking, it’s also a good idea to cut down on your intake of processed foods as they are laden with salt. Using salt substitutes is definitely a wonderful idea.

Taking Too Much OTC Drugs

Experts say that the taste buds and sense of smell work together to make you enjoy your food. There are plenty of over-the-counter (OTC) drugs that, when taken excessively or unnecessarily, can have a negative impact on the nose, thus decreasing your ability to perceive taste. OTC drugs that are said to ruin your sense of smell range anywhere from muscle relaxants to antihistamines.

Exposure to Pesticides

If you’re not careful, you may be consuming fruits and vegetables with traces of pesticides in them. This is not a good thing because toxins such as benzene and arsenic not only wreak havoc to your health but also your ability to identify taste qualities. Health authorities say that these chemicals can disturb your olfactory system which is essential for tasting food.

The above are some of the habits that can rob your taste buds of their ability to pick up an assortment of tastes, causing foods to seem bland. Ditch these things to make each time you spend at the table a delightful experience.

 

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