Now, scientists are getting closer to figuring out whether there is a sixth recognizable taste: fat.
“Now we know that having a genetic variation affects how sensitive you are.
But we don’t know the implications.
____QUIZ:How Much Fat Are You Eating?
These receptors are clumped together into taste buds, with 50 to 150 receptors per bud.
All taste buds include a mix of receptors for all the categories of taste.
Here, the molecules help with digestion.
And the protein that Dr. Pepino’s team identified as a potential fat taste receptor may help digest fats.
Even fat has its purpose, which is why we’re able to sense and digest it.
“But fats are very important for life.
Your body cannot synthesize them.
So we depend on getting fats that are essential and critical for life through our diet.”
One such receptor is a protein called CD36.
MORE:Are Low-Fat Foods Making You Fat?
The fat-free solutions included a thickening agent to give them a similar texture to oil.
More than Genetics
But genes aren’t the only factor affecting how easily we detect fat.
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According to Dr. Keast, when we eat fat, it initiates mechanisms that signal we’re full.
In other words, a certain amount of fat will tell us when to stop eating.
It will also signal to our brains that we’re still full between meals.
“These findings have implications for obesity,” says Keast.
“Those who are insensitive to fat do not get the ‘fullness’ signals it provides.
The gap between eating events would also be extended.
Those who are insensitive to fat do not feel full and therefore keep eating.”
But sussing out the details is no easy task.
Still, Mattes is optimistic.
That breakthrough research would also change our understanding of biology.
“The question is, is ‘fatty’ also a taste?
This shakes the roots of basic biology–of one of our fundamental sensory systems.”
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