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Health See other Health Articles Title: Bitter is Better Eating is terrible, it’ll ultimately kill us. Oh I know, you have to eat or you’ll starve to death and perhaps that may be true. But that doesn’t dismiss the fact that how we eat today and how our bodies have evolved over the course of millions of years are as different as John Q. Public is from a caveman. And as far as going paleo, that’s a bunch of marketing gibberish. There’s little available in our modern food supply that our paleo ancestors would recognize. Does anyone think our prehistoric forbearers ate coconut flour or bacon? Yes, it’s true that prehistoric man, was omnivorous and would eat anything, even the dreaded carbs. A recent University of Chicago study suggests that starchy tubers were an important component of the paleolithic diet and critical for speeding up proto-human brain development. But whatever they ate, it was always wild and fresh. And there was a feast or famine aspect for much of our history. Our caveman ancestors would eat anything, but anything wasn’t always around. Consequently the human body learned to eat whatever was available. And, it also evolved to love flavor, which was evolution’s way of assuring that we would enjoy being nourished. Each of us has 10,000 cellular microprocessors on our tongue called taste buds. Appearing like no more than little bumps, each is a bioectrical circuit, hard wired to fire off a jolt of energy that ultimately winds up in a little burst o’ bliss in our brain’s pleasure center. That’s how delicious works! However, while we grew up eating food that was fresh and nutrient dense, 21st century edibles have been scientifically designed by the most brilliant PhD’s in the world to be the exact opposite. Even so-called good foods, carrots, apples and pears for example, have been modified over the centuries to be high in sweet, and low in bitter. While at first it that may seem like losing the bitter is a good thing, as it turns out it’s not. That’s because what we call plant or phyto- nutrients, the vitamins, flavonoids, sterols and carotenes, are in the bitter fraction of the plant and when it’s genetically modified for palatability, it’s those nutritional elements that are being reduced. Making matters worse, to satisfy our passion for sweetness, food scientists are learning how to completely eliminate these bitter substances, potentially turning natural whole fruits and vegetables in junk foods. According to Dr. Jed Fahey, a molecular biologist at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland, “Eating fruits and vegetables without phytochemicals would in many ways be analogous to drinking the empty calories of a can of soda” . The human tongue is capable of tasting five distinct flavors: salty, sweet, sour, savory, and bitter which is by far the most medicinal. Unfortunately, as human beings we just don’t like bitterness, which throughout human evolutionary history has been associated with poison. Professor Russel Keats Professor of Food Chemistry at Deakin University in New Zealand states that the bitter taste sends the brain one message: “If excessive, don’t consume”. Certainly this avoidance strategy has its place. Bitter means at least a certain degree of toxicity and the human race wouldn’t have survived very long if we found poisonous plants appetizing. But sometimes there’s a fine line between toxic effects and health benefits. What doesn’t kill us makes us stronger and our tendency to completely avoid contact with the bite of bitter can cause us to miss out on a lot of nutritional value. Bitters benefits to the body include sun protection, stimulating the immune system and killing microbes among others. Bitter compounds have anti-oxidant properties too. One ultra-bitter compound from grapefruit called narigenin is an anti-inflammatory that’s especially helpful for the digestive tract. Meals that begin with bitter foods can have a positive effect on enzyme and bile secretion. Bitter foods can help you lose weight as it stimulates satiety and you’ll end up eating less. And, apparently cancer cells don’t like bitter either. The list of these acrid elements with anti-carcinogenic properties now numbers in the hundreds and it seems to grow longer every day. Is bitter strong stuff? Sure it is, and many of us won’t voluntarily include it in our meals. But just the right amount of bitter can create balance. The fattiness of foods can be tempered with a little arugula or chard. And, just a touch of bitterness, perhaps a touch of cocoa or coffee powder can soften the blow of an especially sweet dessert. As all the instruments in an orchestra play a vital part in the final quality of the music, understanding how to employ bitter in a symphony of tastes can be important for flavor as well as our physical health and well-being. The bottom line on bitter is learn to use it, you’ll be better for it. Post Comment Private Reply Ignore Thread
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