U09 Psych 100 Chapter Notes - Chapter 5.4-5.5: Supertaster, Umami, Frontal Lobe
26 Sep 2016
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Gustation sense of taste; to keep poisons out of our digestive systems while allowing good food in. The stimuli for taste are chemical substances from food that dissolve in saliva. Taste buds taste receptors; mostly on the tongue (in the tiny, mushroom-shaped structures called papillae) but also on mouth and throat: humans have 8000-10000 taste buds. When flood, liquid, or some other substance stimulates the taste buds, they send signal to the thalamus. These signals are then sent to the frontal lobe, which produces the experience of taste. Sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami (japanese for savory or yummy ) Taste alone does not affect how much you like a certain type of food. Food seems tasteless if your nasal passages are blocked; this is because taste relies heavily on the sense of smell. Cultural influences on food preferences begin in the womb.
