Episode Summary:
“In all my work, I try to say – ‘You may be given a load of sour lemons, why not try to
make a dozen lemon meringue pies?” – Maya Angelou.
Hello everyone, and welcome to The Happy Holiday Life! Today we dive into a world of
sourness (not the bad kind… well, I guess that depends on you). Who all here likes sour things?
I know I would much rather have a chocolate candy bar instead of sour patch kids, but hey,
that’s just me! Today, I want to talk to you about the statistics of what age groups usually like
sour candies and what the sourest food is, and the importance it has on its culture! Stay tuned.
Today is going to be a sweet but sour episode!
Highlights
- “Over one-third of kids tested preferred the sourest food tested, whereas virtually none of
the adults preferred this food.”
- “Approximately 25 percent of Americans are non-tasters, 50 percent are medium tasters,
and 25 percent are “supertasters.”
- “People in Japan have eaten umeboshi for centuries, having learned from the
experience of their restorative and preservative properties along with their virtues in
helping to ward off colds and other bugs.”
Show Notes:
- Why Do People Life Sour Things And Others Don’t? : kids prefer sour tastes much more
than adults. A study was done 1/3rd of kids tested preferred sourest food tried, where
none of the adults chose it!
- Why Do Kids Like Sour Candy More Than Adults: I think it is because it is something
new and exciting, and when they see someone else eat sour candy, they see them
make this funny face, and so they see it as more fun and happy. But to see if this may be
right, let me bring my five-year-old in, he says he doesn’t like sour foods, but he thinks
other kids do because of their taste buds. So maybe I’m kind of mean for thinking kids
find it funny to see others eat sour candies, lol ?.
- Our Senses: our ability to sense the five accepted categories comes from receptors on
our taste buds. The sense of touch and smell even plays a role in experiencing taste.
- What Is The World’s Sourest Food? : the winner is the Umeboshi Plum from Japan!
These are very traditional and mostly eaten as a snack. This fruit is known to battle or
cure fatigue, alcohol poisoning/hangovers, vomiting, nausea, diarrhea, infections, and
more. They are known to have three times more citric acid in them than a lemon!
- History Of Ume: in the Heian Period, they used it as a medicine. And in the Sengoku
Period, which was widespread of military conflict, a concoction of umeboshi, rice flour,
and rock candy was treasured by samurai.
Facts: - 1. 25% of Americans are non-tasters. 50% medium tasters and 25% are supertasters.
- 2. More than 200,000 people visit a physician for sensory problems such as taste disorders
each year.
- 3. Some people are surprised to learn that flavors are recognized mainly through the sense
of smell. If you hold your nose while eating chocolate, for example, you will have trouble
identifying the chocolate flavor—even though you can distinguish the food’s sweetness
or bitterness. The distinguishing characteristic of chocolate (what differentiates it from
caramel, for example) is sensed mostly by its odor.
- 4. Taste cells (along with smell cells) are the only sensory cells regularly replaced
throughout a person’s life span. Taste cells usually last about ten days.
- Activity Of The Day: go to the store and let your kids pick out their favorite candy for you
to try!
