Flavour Index Shows We’re A Nation of Adventurous Eaters
We live in a society where there are multiple cultures which can only mean one thing, there are lots of different foods available to us!
Britain has one of the richest varieties of cuisines available and, for the most part, they like to take full advantage of it.
New research shows that Brits love their sweet food as well as their spicy food, but it also shows that the older generations are a little set in their ways.
The Flavour Index from Lloyd Grossman Sauces shows that when we mature to adulthood, our taste buds actually reduce from 30,000 to 10,000.
This may have you thinking that we’re missing out on loads of flavours but, in fact, we tend to get more adventurous with our food because of it.
We’re more likely to try new dishes as we get older because we can pallet them more easily.
Between the ages of 24 and 35 is when we’re most adventurous with our food and are willing to try all sorts of new flavours.
Unfortunately, as we get older, we’re less likely to try new things and the research found that a third of over 55s prefer meat and two veg to any other meal.
Fortunately the rest of us are more adventurous and most of us enjoy sweet and spicy food the most.
Leading the way for spicy foods are the 24 to 35 year olds, who favour spicy foods the most and 68 per cent of them said they are willing to try new foods that they haven’t experienced before.
Dr. Christy Fergusson, food psychologist, explains the background to this generation’s flavour adventures.
She said, “Adults aged 25-34 are the most adventurous with trying new flavours as they are figuring out which flavours are right for them.
“During this age, we start cooking for ourselves, travelling and living on own so our taste buds are exposed to new flavours and sensations.
“Also, in adulthood, we only have 10,000 taste buds left, compared to the 30,000 taste buds we had in childhood, so we can better tolerate stronger flavour combinations that we wouldn’t have been able to handle as a child.”
What is your favourite food? Do you like to get adventurous in the kitchen? Let us know by commenting below or tweeting us @FemaleFirst_UK
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