Dive Brief:
- A new study at Deakin University finds people may taste carbohydrates in the same way they experience other tastes such as sweet, sour and salty, according to Baking Business. Carbohydrates were previously thought to be invisible to taste receptors.
- Researchers found two carbohydrates, maltodextrin and oligofructose, were perceivable to the human palate. These carbs are found in bread, pasta and rice.
- The study of 34 adults found those with the greatest taste sensitivity to carbohydrates ate more of these foods and had a larger waist. Researchers say this new information could help them better understand how diet impacts health.
Dive Insight:
This relatively small study could have a big impact on food manufacturing, especially when it comes to health-centered products.
While more extensive research needs to be conducted to confirm Deakin University’s findings, it opens up a new avenue for product taste profiles of better-for-you foods. If consumers can taste carbohyrates the way they taste sweet or salty, recipes could increase or decrease the perceived flavor to their advantage.
Health-focused products may downplay the flavor of carbohydrates in an effort to encourage healthy eating habits. While this idea is altruistic in nature, it’s difficult to conceive of a food manufacturer modifying a recipe to make consumers want to eat less of it. Still, if it’s marketed the right way, this message could resonate with customers trying to eat better.
Conventional snack makers may use this to their advantage to make their items even more addicting. The study finds that consumers with a higher sensitivity to the taste of carbohydrates eat more of them. Manufacturers could prey upon this weakness to get them to buy and eat more of their products.
Deakin University’s correlation between eating more carbohydrates and having a thicker waist is nothing new. The underlying message — too many carbs are detrimental to health — is largely the same as it was 15 years ago.
This new information comes at a time when carbohydrates are losing their villainous image, and making a comeback in whole-grain and healthier varieties. In the early 2000s, many Americans followed the low-carbohydrate Atkins diet to lose extra weight — making "low-carb" a food buzzword. The Atkins diet works because when a person eats fewer carbohydrates, the body turns to its stored fats for energy. Last year, Atkins announced a partnership with mealkit company Chef'd to provide easier access to cook-at-home low-carb meals. Atkins could be among the companies positioned to capitalize on this newly discovered taste by touting their carb-friendly products.
The connection between being more sensitive to the taste of carbohydrates and a rounder midsection is new information. If more research confirms this correlation, some consumers could be inclined to toss the frozen brown rice hibernating in their fridge and try to go low-carb again. However, we’re unlikely to see the same banishment of carbohydrates as before because of this study. More compelling evidence would be needed to spark a national movement away from healthy grains.