Cornell study: green tea changes how we perceive flavor
ITHACA, N.Y. â€" Cornell University researchers recently made the startling discovery that certain chemicals in green tea â€" and perhaps red wine â€" react with saliva in ways that can alter how we perceive flavors.
(Media-Newswire.com) - ITHACA, N.Y. – Cornell University researchers recently made the startling discovery that certain chemicals in green tea – and perhaps red wine – react with saliva in ways that can alter how we perceive flavors.
Specifically, regular consumption of the polyphenol-rich drinks can boost astringent sensations and our sensitivity to acids, reports Karl Siebert, professor of food science, in an article set to appear in the January 2011 print edition of the scholarly journal Food Quality and Preference.
Siebert, who worked for 18 years in a brewery before becoming an academic, stumbled upon the finding while studying the relationship between polyphenols – chemical compounds found in plants – and protein chains in drinks such as beer and apple juice. Siebert’s group discovered the strong effect of pH on cloudiness in the drinks created by polyphenols and proteins combining.
The findings led Siebert to wondered if pH levels made a difference in people’s mouths, too; and if so, why.
“We had this idea because of what we had seen before about the protein effect in beverages, and we knew that acid together with polyphenols tastes more astringent than either alone,” Siebert says.
He presented several dilute solutions of acid to a group of panelists, who rated the intensity of astringency. While most reported a mild difference, others had more dramatic sensitivity. Digging deeper, he discovered the most sensitive had been regular green tea drinkers prior to the start of the study.
He then measured the polyphenol levels in saliva of people on days before, during and after they consumed several cups of green tea. This showed that saliva normally contains polyphenols, and there are large differences among individuals. Regular red wine and green tea drinkers had the highest levels.
“It appears that there is a metabolic pool of polyphenol that is influenced by dietary habits, and that the salivary polyphenol level influences perception of astringency caused by acids,” Siebert says.
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