Taste sensations: history of study, evolutionary feasibility and strategies for forming correct taste preferences in children

Abstract

Taste preferences influence not only the formation of human health, but also many areas of his life. That is why the problem of understanding the nature and regularities of taste formation has been a concern for scientists since ancient times and remains relevant nowadays. The article presents generalized data on the history of studying taste from the times of Ancient Greece to our time. Notions about the system of taste sensations in works of Aristotle, Galen, Avicenna, Vesaliy, other medieval scientists and researchers of New time are described. The authors also present an overview of current studies on the evolutionary appropriateness of taste sensations using the expression of sweet taste receptors in animals with different diets. It has been shown that obligate carnivorous animals have lost the function of sweet taste receptors, and in hummingbirds eating sweet floral nectar, on the contrary, another sweet taste receptor has acquired the function of a sweet taste receptor to detect sugars. The authors pay special attention to the available ways of forming correct taste preferences and overcoming eating disorders in infants, which is important from the point of view of the child’s future health. In particular, strategies for repeated taste effects of new foods as well as multisensory interactions with food, including sound, visual, olfactory, tactile and tasting effects are presented. It is particularly important to develop correct taste habits in children with eating disorders such as neophobia and food selectivity. Understanding the multifactorial nature of taste preferences and their impact on human health allows finding new strategies to «teach» taste from early childhood.