MELBOURNE, Australia—A newly discovered ability for people to taste fat could hold the key to reducing obesity, according to new research from the Deakin University. Researchers also found that people with a high sensitivity to the taste of fat tended to eat less fatty foods and were less likely to be overweight.
The research team developed a screening procedure to test the ability of people to taste a range of fatty acids commonly found in foods. They found that people have a taste threshold for fat and that these thresholds vary from person to person; some people have a high sensitivity to the taste while others do not.
“We know that the human tongue can detect five tastes—sweet, salt, sour, bitter and umami (a taste for identifying protein rich foods). Through our study we can conclude that humans have a sixth taste—fat,” the researchers wrote. “We also found that those with a high sensitivity to the taste of fat consumed less fatty foods and had lower BMIs than those with lower sensitivity. With fats being easily accessible and commonly consumed in diets today, this suggests that our taste system may become desensitized to the taste of fat over time, leaving some people more susceptible to overeating fatty foods.”
