Recently I was at my sister’s house, and she offered to make us eggs and toast for lunch (a favorite of both of ours). She warned me that she’s not very good at cooking eggs, but still asked how I like them cooked and said she’d try her best. I told them I like them overhard- I hated runny eggs as a kid, and I haven’t had one since. Well, the egg she gave me was more of an over-medium, and it intrigued me- I actually thought it was quite good! I decided I needed to learn how to cook an egg over easy, and have been practicing almost every day for breakfast.

And frankly- I’m hooked. I am LOVING my eggs over easy on toast. There is a different richness in flavor that I didn’t appreciate as a child. Now I’m going to have to apologize to my dad for thinking it was gross that he ate his runny eggs over sourdough pancakes- because that actually sounds amazing.

Isn't it funny how our taste buds seem to change over time? Eggs are not the only thing for me. I hated peanut butter and avocado as a child- and now I can’t get enough of them! Dark chocolate is a more recent change for me. I always preferred white, but when pregnant with my 5th child 3 years ago, I suddenly CRAVED dark chocolate- and I’ve been hooked ever since. I find it fascinating! Is this just personal preference, or is there actually science behind it?

Our taste buds are actually always changing, technically. Our tongues are full of little bumps called papillae. Inside these bumps, our taste buds are covered in tiny microscopic hairs called microvilli, and those are what send messages to your brain about how something tastes. The average person has about 9,000 taste buds, but as you age, your taste buds actually stop reproducing, and so you can end up with significantly less taste buds (like 5,000!). In addition, your other taste buds may lose effectiveness, and so things might not taste as strongly as you age. So over time, your mouth’s ability to taste is literally changing. This could explain why more adults seem to like dark chocolate instead of kids- they probably can taste the bitterness much more strongly!

The nose plays a factor in all this as well. We can’t taste food nearly as well when we can’t smell (I’m sure you’ve noticed this during a cold or if you’ve had Covid!). People between the ages of 30-60 have the strongest sense of smell, but it starts to weaken after that. So this could also explain why certain things may be more appealing to you as an adult than they were as a kid! I LOVE avocado, but as a child I just thought it was green and mushy with no flavor. It’s very likely that I actually wasn’t even tasting the flavor!

Associations and life experiences can affect our tastes as well. My mom believes I hated peanut butter as a kid because she made peanut butter sandwiches almost every day because it was an easy, cheap protein. She thinks I got sick of them and thus- my hate for peanut butter was born. Another example- I got super sick after eating at a particular restaurant, and I have no desire to go there again; the thought of their food literally makes me want to gag. I’m sure we all have similar associations!

So basically- our tastes are always changing. Life experiences, colds, viruses, pregnancies, age, loss of smell- so many things can affect our taste! So if you come across something you dislike, but haven’t tried it in a few years- give it a shot! You may find that it’s now one of your favorite foods!

What foods have you grown to love over the years? I’d love to hear all about it- I find it fascinating!