If my body was meant to eat veggies, then why do my taste buds completely disagree?

[jamesbiz]

Originally Posted by MasterD

Live on just fruits for a couple of weeks and see how great those greens taste.

Not sure what you are trying to infer by that. My body isn't magically going to accept the taste of greens if I live on fruits for a couple of weeks.

[MasterD]

Originally Posted by jamesbiz

Not sure what you are trying to infer by that. My body isn't magically going to accept the taste of greens if I live on fruits for a couple of weeks.

Your taste buds are completely disturbed by all the unnatural foods you are eating.

Yes, if you go back to eating organic, fresh, raw, whole and ripe fruit, one type at a time, when hungry, until full, for a couple of weeks, your taste buds will readjust and greens will taste incredible. When you go to the supermarket you will look at the celery and lettuce like you looked at chocolate before. It is my personal experience and that of many others.

[jamesbiz]

Originally Posted by MasterD

Your taste buds are completely disturbed by all the unnatural foods you are eating.

Yes, if you go back to eating organic, fresh, raw, whole and ripe fruit, one type at a time, when hungry, until full, for a couple of weeks, your taste buds will readjust and greens will taste incredible. When you go to the supermarket you will look at the celery and lettuce like you looked at chocolate before. It is my personal experience and that of many others.

Have you read anything I've posted?

[jamesbiz]

Originally Posted by greeneyedgirl

I was also wondering if you were to make a green smoothie, but have almost no greens. Maybe just 1/2 leaf. Maybe you won't be able to detect the leafy taste. Then, you could either slowly work up to more greens, or add more and more disguising flavour (of a healthy variety). I find bananas help cancel out the green flavour. (And cinnamon.) Also, I find swiss chard and spinach the most benign of flavours. I can put 200 g in 1 liter of smoothie easily and not taste the greens per se, although I can see them and sometimes feel the fibers. I started with maybe 50 g. Kale, on the other hand, is pretty gross even at 100 g for me.

I've been weaning my self onto leafy greens that same way. I do a large package of baby greens and watermelon and pomegranate juice. Sometimes I put a banana or plum or some other fruit. As long as there are no junks, I'm ok. But when I had some larger pieces left in there by not mixing good enough, I was gagging.

[MasterD]

Originally Posted by jamesbiz

Have you read anything I've posted?

I never had your 'condition' and I do not know anyone who has the same issues.

Though, what I wrote still holds.

I also go through periods where I am repelled by the thought of eating greens. I don't gag, but it is very unappealing.

I never craved greens, until I switched to 811rv (see FoodnSport | Home of The 80/10/10 Diet & Dr. Douglas Graham). I don't have to force them in, I just like to eat them in great quantities, when I want them. I don't know why you have to switch to 100% raw vegan in order to really crave them, but that's my experience. What you call 'healthy' is still very stimulating to your body. In fact, when I mix foods up too much, I tend to crave greens much less. After a period of mono-ing on bananas for about a week I craved greens more than ever.

I can't garantuee that it works, but this would be my approach.

[jamesbiz]

Originally Posted by MasterD

I read your first before. Now I read all of it.

I never had your 'condition' and I do not know anyone who has the same issues.

Though, I think it still holds.

I also go through periods where I am repelled by the thought of eating greens. I don't gag, but it is very unappealing.

I never craved greens, until I switched to 811rv (see FoodnSport | Home of The 80/10/10 Diet & Dr. Douglas Graham).

I can't garantuee that it works, but this would be my approach.

Is it really a condition if 1/4 of the population has the same thing ( if not worse)?
I eat VERY healthy, and right now most of the food I eat is organic, raw, or natural. I don't eat any processed sugar either. Almost no unnatural foods. It's not a period. It's my whole life. A lot of food is unappealing to a lot of people, but we aren't talking about unappealing. Think of a food that you'd NEVER eat, because it's just absolutely disgusting to you. The taste, the smell, and even the sight. Now go eat that.

[MasterD]

Originally Posted by jamesbiz

Is it really a condition if 1/4 of the population has the same thing ( if not worse)?

A huge fraction of the population is overweight. You call that normal?

Originally Posted by jamesbiz

I eat VERY healthy, and right now most of the food I eat is organic, raw, or natural. I don't eat any processed sugar either. Almost no unnatural foods. It's not a period. It's my whole life. A lot of food is unappealing to a lot of people, but we aren't talking about unappealing. Think of a food that you'd NEVER eat, because it's just absolutely disgusting to you. The taste, the smell, and even the sight. Now go eat that.

I am just sharing what worked for me in terms of making greens much more appealing and even very desirable.

Lots of interesting things happen when you switch to a natural diet and get much more in touch with true needs of your body again. Like you, I never understood why 'healthy' stuff didn't taste good. The fact is, healthy stuff DOES taste good, ONCE you get in touch with your body again. When you still eat grains and cooked food, have tons of stress (I don't say you have), do not get enough sleep (I don't say you don't), get not enough sunshine (I don't say you don't), etc.. you will not be in touch with your body and the body may have other priorities than making sure it gets enough greens, so it will be unappealing.

As a kid I was disgusted by eating brussel sprouts, so I can relate to what you mean, though I never had this with other vegetables.

This all said, it might very well be that there also is some psychological barrier now, because it has become such an issue for you. I am afraid I can't help you much there.

I wish you good luck. Making good choices are up to you. Personally, I would not force them in.

[Plays With Life]

Originally Posted by MasterD

Lots of interesting things happen when you switch to a natural diet and get much more in touch with true needs of your body again. Like you, I never understood why 'healthy' stuff didn't taste good. The fact is, healthy stuff DOES taste good, ONCE you get in touch with your body again.

I've had this same experience. After I eat vegetarian for a period, what I want to eat, and what tastes good and repulses me changes dramatically. Same with going vegan, and same with going raw. After eating raw for a while, I actually had trouble ingesting any meat at all. My body was almost forcible in rejecting it.

Originally Posted by jamesbiz

It's not a period. It's my whole life. A lot of food is unappealing to a lot of people, but we aren't talking about unappealing. Think of a food that you'd NEVER eat, because it's just absolutely disgusting to you. The taste, the smell, and even the sight. Now go eat that.

I still don't understand why in the world you're trying to eat something that feels like that. Here's what it sounds like to me:

I can't eat rusty nails! Whenever I take a bite of a rusty nail, I gag and sometimes I throw it up! And it's been this way my whole life. So how can I add more rusty nails to my diet??

Uhhh .. somewhere in there, logic has been totally abandoned.

[jamesbiz]

Originally Posted by Plays With Life

I still don't understand why in the world you're trying to eat something that feels like that. Here's what it sounds like to me:

I can't eat rusty nails! Whenever I take a bite of a rusty nail, I gag and sometimes I throw it up! And it's been this way my whole life. So how can I add more rusty nails to my diet??

Uhhh .. somewhere in there, logic has been totally abandoned.

You ask that question on a board that pretty much idolizes the miraculous effects of vegetables? I don't believe in vegetarianism, but as far as I can tell, eating them IS healthy, and I'm trying to get more into me. I believe in a balanced diet of everything. I'm not asking how I can add more leafy greens. I'm trying to find out if my body is telling me I don't NEED them. Like right now, I'm going to go make me a green smoothie. It masks the taste and smell, but is it all for nothing?

[liamona]

Originally Posted by jamesbiz

I eat veggies ( and everything is organic), by preparing them a certain way, or else I can't eat them, but that usually means destroying the nutrients in them.

Do you mean by cooking? Not all of them are destroyed if they're cooked gently. Do you like kale if it's sautéed with butter? I do. However, no one else in my family does. I'm starting to wonder if they're supertasters too.

[liamona]

Originally Posted by Plays With Life

This reminds me of when I was vegetarian in Latin America. The idea there is that meat is what the body needs, and vegetables are the poor-man's food that you only eat when you can't afford meat.

That's pretty much a common belief in the rest of the world. Eating meat and fat is equated with being well-nourished and rich, and that's probably why we have old sayings like: "Living off the fat of the land," "gravy train," "land of milk and honey," "cream of the crop," etc. etc.

[Plays With Life]

Originally Posted by jamesbiz

You ask that question on a board that pretty much idolizes the miraculous effects of vegetables?

I think most people here believe in eating based on what you feel. And it just happens that for them, eating vegetables feels great.

I don't think your body NEEDS leafy greens. I haven't eaten any for years, and I don't ever crave 'em or anything. I'd say do an experiment: go without 'em for 6 months, or something, and see how it feels.

Do you feel better when you eat leafy greens, or something? Is that what makes you think they're healthy?

So stop putting paint chips in your smoothies :P And start eating based on what feels good.

[jamesbiz]

Originally Posted by liamona

Do you mean by cooking? Not all of them are destroyed if they're cooked gently. Do you like kale if it's sautéed with butter? I do. However, no one else in my family does. I'm starting to wonder if they're supertasters too.

well... mostly steaming in the nuker... but that's just for the broccoli and cauliflower. Then I make the green smoothies with a variety of about 6 baby greens, and fruit. That's about all the "true veggies" I get into my stomach. don't forget that another 50% of the country just is a little sensitive, but not TOO sensitive, so they just don't like the taste, vs it tasting gross.

Never tried any form of cabbage, but it's on the list of things that I'm sensitive too, so no, probably won't like it to much.

[jamesbiz]

Originally Posted by Plays With Life

I think most people here believe in eating based on what you feel. And it just happens that for them, eating vegetables feels great.

I don't think your body NEEDS leafy greens. I haven't eaten any for years, and I don't ever crave 'em or anything. I'd say do an experiment: go without 'em for 6 months, or something, and see how it feels.

Do you feel better when you eat leafy greens, or something? Is that what makes you think they're healthy?

So stop putting paint chips in your smoothies :P And start eating based on what feels good.

Well, considering I have 18 years experience ( did not put a single veggie in my mouth for 18 years!), I'd say that's experiment enough. The thing is, I couldn't really tell because I never really ate healthy. I work out like 2 months of the year, and that's usually with two 1 1/2 month bursts and then NOTHING.

With the veggies tho, I don't feel any better or worse. I might actually feel better, but I'm also sleeping better, and meditating, and not sitting around so much, as well as mentally feeling better, so it's hard to judge the effects.

Actually, the only effect I get ( which I'm feeling right now) is I feel light headed a little or what ever feeling this is, after I drink the green smoothie. Still don't know what that means, but after a little bit, I feel great again.

[Plays With Life]

Originally Posted by jamesbiz

Actually, the only effect I get ( which I'm feeling right now) is I feel light headed a little or what ever feeling this is, after I drink the green smoothie. Still don't know what that means, but after a little bit, I feel great again.

I wonder if that light-headedness is some kind of allergic reaction.

[jamesbiz]

this is what a supertasters tongue looks like.


Mines a little worse, and covered with little crevics, and the back of my tongue is much worse with really tall large buds

[Plays With Life]

But if you feel fine without 'em, I don't see any reason for you to force them into your diet. I'd personally never eat something I had that reaction to.

[jamesbiz]

Originally Posted by Plays With Life

I wonder if that light-headedness is some kind of allergic reaction.

Doubt it. Plus most of everyone online says that you eat veggies WHEN you feel light headed from eating OTHER things lol. Nothing about being light headed from it. In all honesty, there is nothing I'm allergic to. I can eat any food with out having an allergic reaction ( gagging doesn't count ).

Originally Posted by Plays With Life

But if you feel fine without 'em, I don't see any reason for you to force them into your diet. I'd personally never eat something I had that reaction to.

I feel fine now, and plenty of energy and mental clarity. So I dunno.

[FreelanceWanderer]

This article I wrote was published in Walking magazine in 1999, and the information is still valid. Since the magazine went out of business years ago, I guess it's okay to post it here. Hope it helps!

FW
Write for Magazines

Vegetables have long been touted as protectors against everything from cancer to heart attacks. But no matter how much we hear about veggies' disease-fighting power, many of us just can't overcome our dislike of vegetables enough to take advantage of the nutritional benefits they deliver. In fact, studies show there is an entire group of people who are genetically wired to scorn vegetables. Are you a born veggie-hater? Read on to find out what you're missing out on and what you can do to meet your nutritional requirements.

People who don't like vegetables are often dismissed as picky eaters. "Not liking vegetables has really been a burden," says Kate de Fuccio, an intern at the New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York City who lives in Spinnerstown, PA. "People will literally tease me. It becomes a control issue where people think they can 'fix' me and try to force vegetables on me."

But there may be more to a dislike of veggies than pickiness. Recent research has uncovered a group of people called supertasters who have a genetic sensitivity to bitterness.

Until the late 1970s, taste researchers divided people into tasters and non-tasters depending on their ability to taste a chemical called phenylthiocarbamide (PTC). Those who could taste PTC were called tasters, and those who couldn't, non-tasters. Then Linda Bartoshuk, Ph.D., a taste researcher at the Yale University School of Medicine, began to test people for sensitivity to a similar chemical, called 6-n-propylthiouracil (PROP). Her research revealed a subset of tasters who were particularly sensitive to the bitter flavor. She dubbed such people supertasters. About 25% of the population are supertasters, 25% non-tasters, and the rest regular tasters. Almost two-thirds of supertasters are women, and Asians and Blacks tend to be more sensitive than Caucasians.

As luck would have it, the compounds that give vegetables their health benefits also happen to be--you guessed it--bitter. Does this mean that supertasters' acute sensitivity causes them to shun veggies? Adam Drewnowski, Ph.D., director of the nutrition program at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, found that supertasters tend more than tasters and non-tasters not to like grapefruit because of the bitter cancer-fighting compound naringen. "The results showed that supertaster status does alter preferences," says Drewnowski. "But whether they eat less grapefruit as a result, we don't know. We don't know if a sensitivity to bitterness translates into changes in eating habits."

Veggies may be bitter, but their benefits are sweet. According to studies by the American Dietetic Association, vegetables contain compounds that combat cancer and heart disease and fiber that speeds toxins through the digestive tract before they can do harm. The American Institute for Cancer Research in Washington, DC, claims that cancer incidence could decrease by as much as 20% if all Americans got the five servings of vegetables a day recommended by the National Cancer Institute.

The compounds that make veggies cancer-fighting powerhouses are called phytochemicals. "We think there are thousands of phytochemicals, but only a fraction of them have been discovered," says Melanie Polk, R.D., Director of Nutrition Education at the American Institute for Cancer Research. According to Polk, every family of vegetables has its own phytochemical profile. For example, the cruciferous family--which includes cabbage, cauliflower and broccoli--boasts indoles, while the allium family--with such members as scallions, onions and garlic--provides allicin. Vegetables contain so many still-undiscovered phytochemicals that no food supplement or vitamin can take the place of a variety of fresh vegetables in the diet.

Veggies' superstar nutritional status is good news for health-conscious Americans. But where does that leave those of us who think veggies are vile? If you let the bitter taste of veggies keep you from your five a day, don't despair. We talked with nutritionists and taste researchers to find out what you can do to take the edge off your veggies so you can fit more of them into your diet.

- Sometimes, Fat is Good

Especially if it helps you eat more veggies. According to Paul Breslin, Ph.D., an Assistant Member at the Monell Chemical Senses Center in Philadelphia, some bitter compounds are lipophilic, meaning they readily dissolve in fat. So it's possible that putting a little fat in the form of a cheese sauce or creamy salad dressing on vegetables will suppress the bitter taste.

- Shake on Some Salt

Ever notice how your favorite chocolate recipe contains salt, or how salted cantaloupe tastes sweeter? Breslin says that salt blocks bitter flavors (such as the naturally sharp flavor of chocolate) and acts as a filter that lets more desirable flavors shine through. Dusting your veggies with salt may make them more palatable.

- Sprinkle Them with Sugar

Last year the British Cancer Research Campaign, in conjunction with a major frozen-food chain, launched a new line of flavored foods--including chocolate covered vegetables--in hopes of getting kids to eat their greens. Okay, chocolate-dipped veggies may be going a bit too far--but the idea behind it is valid. If you find veggies too bitter, try going the Mary Poppins route with recipes that call for a spoonful of sugar.

- Heat Them Up

If the bitterness of raw vegetables makes you skimp on greens, try microwaving, steaming or stir-frying them instead. The process of heating them up helps dull the bite. "The Chinese are sensitive to bitterness, but they eat a lot of vegetables," says Adam Drewnowski. "How? They stir-fry them."

- Hide Them Away

Maybe Mom had the right idea hiding veggies in the meatloaf. If you really can't stomach the taste of vegetables, the best thing might be to mask their flavor with other foods. "You can chop vegetables up really small and hide them in other things, such as a casserole or an omelet," suggests Melanie Polk. "Or try pureeing vegetables in soup. The flavors meld very nicely, and you won't taste the vegetables as much." Other ideas that take advantage of this principle: Try zucchini or carrot bread, grate carrots into hamburgers or tomato sauce, or toss bits of chopped vegetables into macaroni or potato salad from the deli.

You've tried all these suggestions, but still can't bear veggies? Take heart. As vegetables' popularity grows, more types of veggies are becoming available in the local supermarket--some of which may be more palatable than others. If you don't like the tangy green bell pepper, you can try its sweeter red, yellow or orange counterparts. Have you ever tried celeriac? Or salsify? You may be pleasantly surprised.

Whatever you do, don't give up on the health benefits of veggies for good. As we grow older, our sense of taste tends to become duller--so the vegetable you find too bitter today might be a palate pleaser in a few years.

SIDEBAR
Are You a Supertaster?

Try this test to find out. Put a gummed reinforcer ring (the kind you use on loose-leaf paper) on your tongue with one edge touching the middle of your tongue and the other edge touching the side. Use a cotton swab to dab blue food coloring in the center of the ring. Remove the ring and, using a magnifying glass, count the pink circles on the blue background. These rings are called fungiform papillae, and they correspond to the number of taste buds. If there are more than thirty circles in the ring, you're a supertaster; between five and ten, you're a non-taster; and anywhere in between, you're a regular taster.

SIDEBAR

It seems as if vegetables and supertasters are evolutionarily at odds with one another. Vegetables have a bitter taste to deter insects, while it's theorized that the purpose of the supertaster gene is as a sensory warning system for poison. In fact, women are more sensitive to bitter tastes in the first part of pregnancy, presumably to protect their fetuses from ingested poison.

If supertaster status is so beneficial, then why aren't we all supertasters? "Being a supertaster is an advantage in a dangerous environment," explains Linda Bartoshuk. "But being a non-taster is an advantage in a non-dangerous environment, because non-tasters can experiment with new foods. It's better for a species to have both groups."

[Nex]

Originally Posted by jamesbiz

I'm what they refer to as a supertaster. My taste buds are very large, plentiful, and sensitive. I was reading a blog and it finally made perfect sense. Aren't humans made to detect things that they shouldn't eat? I'm not complaining that veggies don't taste good. I'm complaining that to ME, veggies taste absolutly vile and disgusting, with a horrible bitter taste.
Why kids don’t eat their greens « Plant Poisons and Rotten Stuff – The Blog

I've been like this since I was a little kid. Dad had to pick me up from school because I literally puked when they forced me to eat a salad ( this was communist Russia, so yes they FORCED), and they just thought I was picky. I can't take hot liquid or food. Well, just read the article, and you'll understand, and then answer my one question.

Was I born to not eat veggies, and doesn't the body know what it needs and doesn't need?

It's odd that kids don't usually like vegetables. But then when you are grown up they even are desirable in a sunny day.

I believe your own body (and therefore your taste buds) do know better. It is interesting but people's tastes change over time. I think that maybe, as a kid you instintically know that you should be taking other sort of food. Fats and carbohydrates were very good for a child's diet back in the day where food was scarce, you know... (which remains me of a vegetarian argument about how we are not as overspecialized to meat as lions... news flash: We are not overspecialized to vegetables either. Humans evolved on an omnivore diet, that's how our bodies work.

Of course, things are different now, some people completely OVEREAT some stuff (ie dairy) it comes as no surprise some vegetarians and vegans claim a huge improvement, and when you further analyze their cases, they used not to be on the healthiest diets. Instead, people outside of the hamburger empire find it harder to believe that meat is bad for you (Mostly because they didn't abuse it)

My ways of eating animals due to cultural backgrounds always involved balancing with other sorts of foods. I do take hamburgers but not very frequently. It is interesting, but I am convinced the most healthy diet should be one in which you eat salads with animals, instead of animals with salad or just salad, anyone follows?

[agnostic]

Well, let me be the one to state the unpleasant idea that maybe vegetables aren't the ultimate food they are always said to be. Plants have no interest in being eaten and since they cannot run away, they produce poisons and anti-nutrients to keep animals away. We bred a lot of that out of our plants, and we learned to cook some of them to make them edible. So maybe -just maybe- kids don't like veggies because they are not that good?
More specifically: If you don't like raw vegetables, don't feel forced to eat them. You can live a long healthy life without them. Don't worry.

[scorpio1980]

Originally Posted by agnostic

Well, let me be the one to state the unpleasant idea that maybe vegetables aren't the ultimate food they are always said to be. Plants have no interest in being eaten and since they cannot run away, they produce poisons and anti-nutrients to keep animals away. We bred a lot of that out of our plants, and we learned to cook some of them to make them edible. So maybe -just maybe- kids don't like veggies because they are not that good?
More specifically: If you don't like raw vegetables, don't feel forced to eat them. You can live a long healthy life without them. Don't worry.

I totally agree. I have never really liked any vegetables, except for the ones that are actually fruits, or tubers, and even then animal food was always more appealing to me. I just cannot imagine my ancestors eating loads of leaves instead of say fish or meat.

[bluedragon]

The atitude you have towards eating is VERY important. If you believe that, in the long run, it is important to only eat the best foods for your body, and that taste is irrelevant, as long as a food is healthy for you, than I think you will start to really enjoy those foods that are healthy. How could you enjoy them before getting used to them?

I remember a time when I couldn't drink any tea that wasn't sweetened. Then I stopped sweetening all herbal tea. Than I stopped sweetening cocoa. Now I even drink the coffee plain and simple (or with cinnamon). I found a new definition of taste - I love all teas as they are and I would rather skip them than add sugar (or honey or anything sweet) in them. Coffee is the only one that I enjoy sweetened, but only if I can put organic cane sugar (like the one they have at Starbucks), but I feel better when I drink it plain (especially if I eat fruit soon after it).

The same with veggies. You just eat them, and eat them, and you get used to them and you start liking them. Then you start hating the fat, unsavory white bread and donuts and other things.

[funchy]

Originally Posted by jamesbiz

Is it really a condition if 1/4 of the population has the same thing ( if not worse)?

I had never heard of anyone gagging on veggies, with the exception of a few rare people who have isolated food allergies.

It is not true 50% or 25% of the population have this problem.

A "supertaster" is not someone who automatically rejects vegetables. People who are supposedly supertasters often end up as chefs or somalias, able to eat a wide variety of foods and able to distinguish taste more accurately. Also keep in mind a good % of what you call "taste" is done through your olfactory system (smell).

I eat VERY healthy, and right now most of the food I eat is organic, raw, or natural. I don't eat any processed sugar either. Almost no unnatural foods. It's not a period. It's my whole life. A lot of food is unappealing to a lot of people, but we aren't talking about unappealing. Think of a food that you'd NEVER eat, because it's just absolutely disgusting to you. The taste, the smell, and even the sight. Now go eat that.

How can you eat very healthy with no fiber in the diet? How do you get antioxidants? What about the other healthful nutrients found in food? How do you get healthy fats without it all being the yucky saturated-fat kind?

I also don't get the analogy. Vegetables aren't all one flavor, texture, or type. And they can be cooked, steamed,raw, fried, grilled, marinated, or mixed with other things. There are many different species of plant that give us vegetables. Some of the things we call vegetables (eg. tomatoes) are actually fruit.

It is true what they say about "acquired taste". If you grew up with no veggies in your diet then it's logical they taste foreign to you. And if you have it in your head people shouldn't eat them, of course you'll continue to reject them.

[scorpio1980]

Originally Posted by funchy

How can you eat very healthy with no fiber in the diet? How do you get antioxidants? What about the other healthful nutrients found in food?

Meat contains inherent substances that protect it from degradation. Vitamin E, carnosine, glutathione, selenium, and conjugated linoleic acid are among its most notable antioxidants.Vitamin E in meat delays oxidation of polyunsaturated fatty acids in tissue membranes and the conversion of myoglobin (red pigment) in muscle to methmyoglobin (brown pigment). It prevents the propagation of the radical chain by preventing the formation of new radicals.Carnosine - a dipeptide made of the amino acids alanine and histidine prevents rancidity caused by iron, hemoglobin, lipooxidase (an fat enzyme), and singlet oxygen. It can also "bind" metals, scavenge free radicals, and donate hydrogen electrons Being water-soluble, carnosine inactivates fat oxidation catalysts and free radicals in muscle "watery" regions.Its inhibit oxidation in the absence or shortage of vitamin E. It predominates in white skeletal muscles.Glutathione, a tripeptide (made of glutamate, cysteine, and glycine) is found mammalian cells and is a cofactor of glutathione peroxidase (GPx) an enzyme. It protects water-soluble proteins, detoxifies drugs, pollutants, poisons and oxidants such as hydrogen peroxide, and dehydroascorbic acid.Selenium - a mineral antioxidant is a component of glutathione peroxidase. It prevents the oxidation of polyunsaturated fatty acids in tissues, prevents hardening of tissues by preserving its elasticity, delays aging, and inhibits cell proliferation thereby preventing some types of cancers.
Vitamin A, betacarotene (prevents night blindness), lutein and zeaxanthin (prevents macular degeneration), and phosvitin ( inhibits iron and copper catalyzed fat oxidation) abounds in egg yolks.Betacryptoxanthin, also found in egg yolks, protects cells from UV light, and aids in DNA repair by rejoining broken strands and removing oxidized purines by excision repairs.Eggwhite antioxidants include the essential amino acids: glutamic acid, methionine, alanine, asparagine,valine, aspartic acid,serine, lysine,trptophan, and histidine. They protect egg proteins from oxidation.Vitamin A, lutein, zeaxanthin, lycopene, alpha and beta carotene naturally exists in whole bovine milk. Vitamin A and its carotenoids comes from fresh forage consumed by dairy cows. They pass into their milk.Whole milk is also rich in conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), alpha, beta, and gamma tocopherols,and the antioxidant saturated fatty acids - lauric and myristic fatty acids. In the human body, lauric acid is converted into monolaurin - a powerful antioxidant, antibacterial, antiviral, antifungal and antiprotozoal compound. Lauric acid is one of the predominant saturated fatty acids found in human milk.

[jamesbiz]

Originally Posted by funchy

I had never heard of anyone gagging on veggies, with the exception of a few rare people who have isolated food allergies.

It is not true 50% or 25% of the population have this problem.

A "supertaster" is not someone who automatically rejects vegetables. People who are supposedly supertasters often end up as chefs or somalias, able to eat a wide variety of foods and able to distinguish taste more accurately. Also keep in mind a good % of what you call "taste" is done through your olfactory system (smell).



How can you eat very healthy with no fiber in the diet? How do you get antioxidants? What about the other healthful nutrients found in food? How do you get healthy fats without it all being the yucky saturated-fat kind?

I also don't get the analogy. Vegetables aren't all one flavor, texture, or type. And they can be cooked, steamed,raw, fried, grilled, marinated, or mixed with other things. There are many different species of plant that give us vegetables. Some of the things we call vegetables (eg. tomatoes) are actually fruit.

It is true what they say about "acquired taste". If you grew up with no veggies in your diet then it's logical they taste foreign to you. And if you have it in your head people shouldn't eat them, of course you'll continue to reject them.

Actually, yeah it is true, even if you say it's not. What problem do you think I'm referring to? That 25% of the country gags on veggies? No, sorry, never said that. That 25% of the country taste a very harsh chemical in veggies? Yes, that I did say. The chemical that makes it taste bad AND a lot of the nutrients goes away when you do any of the things mentioned above to the veggies. I'm only discussing RAW.
Do I really need to put down everything I eat? I get enough fiber. MORE then enough. Dietery and soluble. I get healthy fats and unhealthy fats. I get antioxidants. Honestly, the only thing I was lacking in my diet was RAW LEAFY veggies. That's it. And I know what a real vegetable is and what we "call" vegetables. I've said it many times on this forum. I am only talking about true vegetables.

A supertaster is someone that tastes a very harsh tasting chemical in many vegetables.

Actually, you know what. Never mind, I have plenty more but

When you get into " supposedly" super tasters, that's where I'm done with this convo. Thank you.

[Dimond]

Practically no one has grown up being taught to like vegetables. If they were given them, they often were cooked to taste unpleasant. Regardless of the various health diets I was on over the years, I preferred vegetables very flavored. Gradually as I became healthier, the way I ate them became healthier, but still it wasn't a huge part of my diet. Then I became raw. It became the most amazing experience to find that the more I ate veggies raw in recipes like soups, salads, marinated, dash of salt or other spices, the more I like them. But it turned out for most, I really didn't need tons of flavor to make them taste good. Cooking actually destroys the true flavor of most vegetables. Anyhow, the longer I was raw, the more I actually enjoyed food, to the point that I actually love food now more than when before I was raw. There's nothing more enjoyable than loving food that is actually healthy for you and is so simple to prepare.

Guess this won't help james, but hopefully will encourage others.

[liamona]

Originally Posted by scorpio1980

Meat contains inherent substances that protect it from degradation.

Wow, that was a lot of great information! Thanks.

[arkimote06]

it's pschological only...whatever things our body get to used to it will be impossible or hard to change it...i also don't like the taste of leaves coz since i was a child i used to eat tasty processed foods. But after fasting and completely removing additives and processed foods my taste buds changed its program. Since birth we became exposed to a lot of factors that slightly modified our body. There are a lot of ingredients in these foods that registered to your brain that makes you crave for it so shifting to another food rightawy is not a good idea. Do it step by step like what you do in quitting smoking.

[jamesbiz]

Originally Posted by arkimote06

it's pschological only...whatever things our body get to used to it will be impossible or hard to change it...i also don't like the taste of leaves coz since i was a child i used to eat tasty processed foods. But after fasting and completely removing additives and processed foods my taste buds changed its program. Since birth we became exposed to a lot of factors that slightly modified our body. There are a lot of ingredients in these foods that registered to your brain that makes you crave for it so shifting to another food rightawy is not a good idea. Do it step by step like what you do in quitting smoking.

No, no it's not. It's physiological. Don't know how many times I have to say that. I also don't know how much I have to say, that as a child I did NOT eat processed foods, nor did I have additives in my food. It was all fresh, and it was all home cooked. I mean come on, we even bough the chickens live ( and I chased the headless chickens around my yard. Ah, to be young again) and finished them off at home. What factors modified my tongue to have more and larger taste buds then most people? The same taste buds that allow me to taste certain chemicals more then most. If you can pinpoint the food that caused that, then I'd love you for ever.

See, you don't LIKE the taste of leaves. There are a lot of things I don't LIKE. Plenty of healthy things to not like, yet I can still eat them just fine. If the taste is so bitter to me, that I can't even go as far as chewing it once, then that is more then just not liking something. I've also been like this since I was a tiny boy, so it's lot like I've had years to get used to other foods. I've always been very against eating raw salads.

Please stop trying to compare me to you, because you are making it look like I'm just faking it. Once you can program your taste buds to eat paper, or even leaves right off the tree, then come and talk to me. I mean yeah, anyone can train them selves to eat just about anything, be it your own urine, or even worse things ( if anyone has ever seen 2G1C), but how and when do you decide if your body is trying to tell you someting?