Don’t Like Vegetables? This Study Says Some People Are Just Genetically Wired to Hate Them

Rejoice dear vegetable haters, for now, you have a strong argument to counter those who kept on bugging you to eat vegetables.

According to BBC News, US scientists confirmed that by inheriting two copies of nasty taste genes, the child will receive tastebuds that will lead to vegetables having a “ruin-your-day” level of bitterness.

Which explains why some people have a hard time consuming enough vegetables, such as broccoli and sprouts, in their diet!

What’s more, the genes will practically make any bitter food taste, worse such as beer, coffee, and dark chocolate.

On the bright side, they said that being sensitive to bitterness might actually protect these people from ingesting poisonous things.

However, according to Dr Jennifer Smith and fellow researchers from the University of Kentucky School of Medicine, it could also be a troublesome factor for these people to eat their recommended five-a-day recommendation of fresh greens.

In technical terms, everyone will inherit a taste gene called TAS2R38, which codes a protein in our tongue taste receptors that allows us to taste bitterness. By inheriting two different variants of the gene, you will have different levels of endurance towards bitterness. For instance:

1. AVI + AVI = Certain chemicals will not taste bitter.
2. AVI + PAV = Bitterness will be perceived from these chemicals but not to such extreme degree.
3. PAV + PAV= “Super-tasters” will find the same food awfully bitter.

AVI and PAV are variants of TAS2R38 gene.

During the research, 175 people were studied and apparently those with two copies of bitter taste PAV gene will only eat very little amounts of leafy greens that should actually be good for the heart.

Dr Smith told medics in a meeting of the American Heart Association; “You have to consider how things taste if you really want your patient to follow nutrition guidelines.”

Their next step is to utilise different spices so that it can help mask the bitterness and make vegetables a lot more appealing for people who are born with the genes that hate certain types of vegetable.

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