Why do most healthy foods taste bad?

[nerdygirl]

Our preferences are partly about stuff like neurotransmitters and partly about acquired tastes. You said Oreos are better than bananas. Kale and spinach? Yum! Kale is a little bitter, so I prefer spinach, but both are so tasty to me. I also like all parts of a chicken equally. This isn't because I'm a weirdo who only likes healthy foods.

Growing up, I almost never ate Oreos. I did eat pecan pie and doughnuts. I really dislike Oreos most of the time. I might have a taste for them once every two or three years. However, I love Bavarian cream filled doughnuts.

 

[Midnight Sky]

At one point I thought those Sobe drinks were suppressants for the effects of depression. So I was buying Orange Mango anytime I felt a low coming on. It's a coincidence though and didn't really do anything when I had an "attack".

 

[Peaches]

honestly, I think Oreos taste really bad, compared to something like this http://www.thesugarfreevegan.com/item/408-sugar-free-chocolate-cake.html

 

[TropicalStarfish]

Yeah, for me personally, if you avoid bad foods long enough and really stick to a specific diet that includes healthy things, they can start to taste good. Not in the way deep friend chicken or oreo cookies taste good, but... Let's put it this way... When you are starving, I mean like life and death starving, anything tastes good.

Human beings for about 99% of our genetic lifespan have lived primarily in environments where food was scarce. So, it would make sense our minds/bodies would be trained to enjoy foods packed with the most easily convertible energy sources. I think I read something about how a guy (he's a famous author, but I can't think of his name) survived on eating 1 candy bar a day for a while, because he was strapped for cash.

I mean think about a candy bar with nuts in it. You have your protein and sugars for energy. It's the ultimate survival meal. The problem is just simply that for 99% of our history, food of that kind was simply not available very often, and in such quantities.

Healthy food only tastes bad because on the whole, in our type of society, it's pretty ******* hard to not get all the nutrients you need, no matter what you eat. Everything is fortified with vitamins and the body's needs really all in all, aren't that demanding. You could probably eat 1 inch cubed peice of meat every day as your only meal and as long as you had water, you probably wouldn't die. Healthy foods don't neccessarilly have a lot of storable energy, the body really has to work hard to digest vegetables and extract nutrients from them. There was a time in our history when we could break down cellulose, but no longer can we do that.

You could probably eat a couple oreo cookies and 2 bites of meat a day and not die of starvation. Would it be healthy? Probably not. You may acquire certain deficiences over time, maybe not, I'm not an expert, but, I'd bet money you wouldn't die. Sugars mean storable energy, which means fat reserves, which means food for the body, from the body, when food isn't available. THAT is a very valuable life saving survival tactic that has been millions of years in the making...

 

[ardour]

Maybe it's something to do with calorie content. But I think people generally like what they're acquainted with, so high fat/sugar food tastes best to those used to eating a typical western diet.

 

[EveWasFramed]

C'mon...you gotta admit this looks good. It tasted awesome also.

 

[9006]

One word...
Brain. It's that simple. You can retrain your brain (and your taste buds) to some extent.

This is true to some extent, it's whatever you're conditioned to. While unhealthy foods all share common 'likable' tastes, it's almost like a natural law of the universe; things that taste so good is bad for you, healthier foods are bad, heat rises, cold falls, opposites attracts, electrons have negative charge etc...

 

[Midnight Sky]

Us woodpeckers do not have this issue. All trees taste the same, after ramming our heads into several thousands of them throughout our life times. Sorry you humans have it so bad :<.

 

[EveWasFramed]

Us woodpeckers do not have this issue. All trees taste the same, after ramming our heads into several thousands of them throughout our life times. Sorry you humans have it so bad :<.

ROFL!!

 

[GrannySmith111]

You guys are lying to yourselves!

Fried chicken or that salad. 99.99% of America would choose the fried chicken, ignoring the health content. I'm sure you would too. If they both had the same calories, fat, nutrition content everyone would choose the fried chicken.

Fact is, the healthier a food is the worse it tastes for the most part. Vegan alternatives to cookies, burgers, etc. may taste good to you but 99% of the time the unhealthier original version tastes better. I've also heard that some "fat free" foods like hot dogs aren't good for you either since they add some chemicals to get the taste of the fat.

It's just so easy to tell which foods aren't healthy and which foods are just by looking at the taste. This applies to pretty much everything.

Regarding you guys who claim it's because of the fat and sugar content, I believe you are correct. Foods that taste CRAZY good and make you want more are just filled with fats, sodium, sugars, cholesterol all the bad stuff. Why does nobody get heart disease from eating kale, spinach, salads every day? There's hardly any of that crap in those foods, which makes them taste like crap.

To those of you who argue salads taste good, try it without the dressing. What's missing in those vegetables ITSELF is added through a dressing. Again, the same concept applies to the dressing. The more tasty it is (ranch, chipotle, italian, etc.) the more of that sugar, fat, sodium crap is in it. Try eating your salad without any dressing and see if it tastes as good. The pic of that salad you showed us, yeah it looks good. But look at the cheese, fat. Take that out and see how much you enjoy your salad .

I wish junk food was good for you lol. I'd be drinking soda every day .

 

[TheRealCallie]

You guys are lying to yourselves!

Fried chicken or that salad. 99.99% of America would choose the fried chicken, ignoring the health content. I'm sure you would too. If they both had the same calories, fat, nutrition content everyone would choose the fried chicken.

Fact is, the healthier a food is the worse it tastes for the most part. Vegan alternatives to cookies, burgers, etc. may taste good to you but 99% of the time the unhealthier original version tastes better. I've also heard that some "fat free" foods like hot dogs aren't good for you either since they add some chemicals to get the taste of the fat.

It's just so easy to tell which foods aren't healthy and which foods are just by looking at the taste. This applies to pretty much everything.

Regarding you guys who claim it's because of the fat and sugar content, I believe you are correct. Foods that taste CRAZY good and make you want more are just filled with fats, sodium, sugars, cholesterol all the bad stuff. Why does nobody get heart disease from eating kale, spinach, salads every day? There's hardly any of that crap in those foods, which makes them taste like crap.

To those of you who argue salads taste good, try it without the dressing. What's missing in those vegetables ITSELF is added through a dressing. Again, the same concept applies to the dressing. The more tasty it is (ranch, chipotle, italian, etc.) the more of that sugar, fat, sodium crap is in it. Try eating your salad without any dressing and see if it tastes as good. The pic of that salad you showed us, yeah it looks good. But look at the cheese, fat. Take that out and see how much you enjoy your salad .

I wish junk food was good for you lol. I'd be drinking soda every day .

I don't think anyone is lying to themselves. Everyone has different taste preferences. I very much dislike seafood (yes, all seafood), but others love it.
I would choose the salad any day of the week (and not just because I don't eat meat. lol) I have ALWAYS loved salads and they've always been one of my favorite things to eat.

It's not about how UNhealthy it is, it's about how it's flavored. You can have VERY healthy food that taste phenomenal. You can also have healthy desserts that taste amazing....

As for what you said about the fat free stuff actually being not very good for you, that is true. I don't feel that anything fat free or sugar free is healthy because it has to use chemicals to achieve the end result. To me, healthy means NO chemicals and NO preservatives. But, that's just me.

 

[panfruit]

Would you rather have some oreo cookies or a banana? Which one tastes yummier?

Obviously the oreo cookie, but the banana is much healthier for you. Oreos contain little to no nutrients and lots of sugar.

This seems to be true for most examples I can come up with. Most super healthy foods are never tasty like the foods most of us love. Burgers, fries, pizza, ice cream, chips, popcorn, soda, etc are all very tasty, but I doubt any of them are healthy for you.

Ever tried Kale? Spinach? Those leafy green vegetables that pack so many nutrients in them? I recently tried some Kale and it tastes pretty nasty.

Same thing with chicken. White meat vs dark meat in Rotisserie chicken. The chicken breast is probably the healthiest part. Lean meat with little fat. Good protein and nutrients compared to other parts of the chicken, which I find much tastier. The chicken breast on its own is so dry, bland, and just not as good as a part of the chicken with some more fat like the thighs, legs, or wings.

Anyone wonder the same thing?

When I was a raw vegetarian only healthy things tasted good. Things like mustard greens and dandelion greens still tasted very bitter, but I chose those over a candy bar or crap like that. There was one instance where I strayed and tried to enjoy a candy bar: it was awful! It tasted like exactly what was on the label, it didn't taste like a delicious treat, but like heavily-process overly-sweet crap (now I eat these regularly).

Kale (and other leafy greens): you can make them very delicious by lightly sauteing them in hot sauce. Leafy greens of all kinds can be tamed by hot sauce, and you don't even need much. Just remember not to boil them, but only saute (or steam and then slather in hot sauce before serving) until they just wilt. You want them to keep their rich coloring; if they lose that you know you've gone too far. When done right they should look almost neon, brighter than when you started, but still vivid. Broccoli is also tasty prepared with hot sauce.

You can also just add some balsamic vinegar & oil (olive/grapeseed/lorenzos) to them. It's light on calories and delicious. I have major vinegar cravings so this is the route I usually go. Though sometimes I have periods where hot sauce is my only true love and prepare accordingly.

And chicken breast doesn't have to be dry, it's just all in how you cook it. Or maybe it's down to the quality of the breast? I do know that sometimes breastmeat I eat tasted so juicy and wonderful; other times, it's a desert in my mouth. That is a mystery I would love to solve: how to make my fowl breasts juicy!

Oreo or banana? I want banana Oreo's! Doesn't that sound incredible? I do crave Oreo's often. Though I usually go with Newman-O's when I can get them, as they are superior in flavor, and they don't give me gastric distress like Oreo's. Try Newman-O's mint flavored and forever you will scoff at ever again eating pedestrian Oreo's. Scoff, I say, scoff!

---

honestly, I think Oreos taste really bad, compared to something like this http://www.thesugarfreevegan.com/item/408-sugar-free-chocolate-cake.html

OMG I must make a special trip to the market for those ingredients! Sugar, egg, and dairy-free! I will eat it by the fistful.

---

You guys are lying to yourselves!

Fried chicken or that salad. 99.99% of America would choose the fried chicken, ignoring the health content. I'm sure you would too. If they both had the same calories, fat, nutrition content everyone would choose the fried chicken.

Fact is, the healthier a food is the worse it tastes for the most part. Vegan alternatives to cookies, burgers, etc. may taste good to you but 99% of the time the unhealthier original version tastes better. I've also heard that some "fat free" foods like hot dogs aren't good for you either since they add some chemicals to get the taste of the fat.

It's just so easy to tell which foods aren't healthy and which foods are just by looking at the taste. This applies to pretty much everything.

Regarding you guys who claim it's because of the fat and sugar content, I believe you are correct. Foods that taste CRAZY good and make you want more are just filled with fats, sodium, sugars, cholesterol all the bad stuff. Why does nobody get heart disease from eating kale, spinach, salads every day? There's hardly any of that crap in those foods, which makes them taste like crap.

To those of you who argue salads taste good, try it without the dressing. What's missing in those vegetables ITSELF is added through a dressing. Again, the same concept applies to the dressing. The more tasty it is (ranch, chipotle, italian, etc.) the more of that sugar, fat, sodium crap is in it. Try eating your salad without any dressing and see if it tastes as good. The pic of that salad you showed us, yeah it looks good. But look at the cheese, fat. Take that out and see how much you enjoy your salad .

I wish junk food was good for you lol. I'd be drinking soda every day .

You don't need dressing to make a salad taste good. Take a greek salad for example: kalamata olives and a little feta bring it to life, even in the absence of dressing. Though some balsamic+oil dressing perfects it. Even just green olives themselves are a good way to bring an undressed salad great flavor. Your salad too bitter? Add more olives. Still too bitter? Add more olives. Still?! Slake that mofo in feta! Kerpow! You are now satisfied.

 

[Goblin]

If you're used to eating junk, your very body will struggle like a drug addict gone cold turkey if all that is taken away. It's not all in the tastebuds. A diet of pizza, pop, burgers, and ice cream makes me feel sick just by thinking about it.

Try this:

Oreo or blueberries and honeydew

Burger or juicy beans, rice, guacamole, and tomato burrito

Potato chips and sour cream dip or pita chips and roasted red pepper hummus

Skittles or soft, juicy cooked carrots with a bit of brown sugar

Pizza or stir-fry with soy sauce, chicken, broccoli, almonds, and sweet peas

Waffles or scrambled eggs with cheese and spinach

 

[panfruit]

Healthy food is so yummy, but kind of expensive here where I live... .___. I would definitely buy it more if I could. :/

That is such a shame. :| It is the same around here: for me to have fresh produce each day I have to almost double my food budget (which means I go without in other areas, always falling behind). I wish I could afford to eat more fruit and veggies. I have so much this month, but as I desperately need new clothes, next month I will have to go largely without, relying on lots and lots of lentils and rice and green split pea meals. I love lentils so much, but after a week of lentil soup at least once a day, it becomes loathesome.

---

If you're used to eating junk, your very body will struggle like a drug addict gone cold turkey if all that is taken away. It's not all in the tastebuds. A diet of pizza, pop, burgers, and ice cream makes me feel sick just by thinking about it.

Try this:

Oreo or blueberries and honeydew

Burger or juicy beans, rice, guacamole, and tomato burrito

Potato chips and sour cream dip or pita chips and roasted red pepper hummus

Skittles or soft, juicy cooked carrots with a bit of brown sugar

Pizza or stir-fry with soy sauce, chicken, broccoli, almonds, and sweet peas

Waffles or scrambled eggs with cheese and spinach

I skip the soy sauce and instead flavor it with minced garlic, ginger, and lime juice (1/4-1/2 a lime at most). My favorite stir-fry base. Along with peanuts, red & yellow bell peppers, diced hungarian pepper, and tofu (smashed into a paste). Sometimes I throw in grape tomatoes, which breaks all stir-fry rules, I know, but it *is* delicious.

 

[Goblin]

If you're used to eating junk, your very body will struggle like a drug addict gone cold turkey if all that is taken away. It's not all in the tastebuds. A diet of pizza, pop, burgers, and ice cream makes me feel sick just by thinking about it.

Try this:

Oreo or blueberries and honeydew

Burger or juicy beans, rice, guacamole, and tomato burrito

Potato chips and sour cream dip or pita chips and roasted red pepper hummus

Skittles or soft, juicy cooked carrots with a bit of brown sugar

Pizza or stir-fry with soy sauce, chicken, broccoli, almonds, and sweet peas

Waffles or scrambled eggs with cheese and spinach

I skip the soy sauce and instead flavor it with minced garlic, ginger, and lime juice (1/4-1/2 a lime at most). My favorite stir-fry base. Along with peanuts, red & yellow bell peppers, diced hungarian pepper, and tofu (smashed into a paste). Sometimes I throw in grape tomatoes, which breaks all stir-fry rules, I know, but it *is* delicious.

I've often added things like garlic and ginger, but sometimes I'm on a budget and have to ease off the flavoring for awhile. I was just thinking of your kale and hot sauce, though.

What's Hungarian pepper like?

 

[pandas123]

They taste really good actually. It's just unhealthy foods taste even better.

 

[panfruit]

If you're used to eating junk, your very body will struggle like a drug addict gone cold turkey if all that is taken away. It's not all in the tastebuds. A diet of pizza, pop, burgers, and ice cream makes me feel sick just by thinking about it.

Try this:

Oreo or blueberries and honeydew

Burger or juicy beans, rice, guacamole, and tomato burrito

Potato chips and sour cream dip or pita chips and roasted red pepper hummus

Skittles or soft, juicy cooked carrots with a bit of brown sugar

Pizza or stir-fry with soy sauce, chicken, broccoli, almonds, and sweet peas

Waffles or scrambled eggs with cheese and spinach

I skip the soy sauce and instead flavor it with minced garlic, ginger, and lime juice (1/4-1/2 a lime at most). My favorite stir-fry base. Along with peanuts, red & yellow bell peppers, diced hungarian pepper, and tofu (smashed into a paste). Sometimes I throw in grape tomatoes, which breaks all stir-fry rules, I know, but it *is* delicious.

I've often added things like garlic and ginger, but sometimes I'm on a budget and have to ease off the flavoring for awhile. I was just thinking of your kale and hot sauce, though.

What's Hungarian pepper like?

Hungarian pepper is hot, of course, but it is also packed with flavor. It is best to cut it into miniscule pieces so you don't end up biting into a large chunk. It adds a wonderful flavor to most any stir-fry, and a bite to boot.

 

[GrannySmith111]

All the things you guys are suggesting to flavor your healthy foods to make it healthier are unhealthy. Hot sauce has no nutritional value to it.

I don't have anything against healthy food. I like the taste of healthy food and probably eat more of it than most people i know. It was just something I thought about one day and decided to bring it up.

Some people seem to wonder if certain things are healthy or not. I feel like I've found an almost foolproof way of finding that out for most foods without the need to look at ingredients or asking a nutritionist lol. Healthier foods taste worse than unhealthier foods for the most part in my opinion. This might not be the same for all of you, but I feel like it is for most of America. Classic junk food that we are used to eating taste much better than organic green veggies. For different cuts of meat, you can also tell if it is healthier just by the taste. Fattier cuts of meat that are more tender and have more flavor are less healthier than the lean cuts of meat I don't like as much.

 

[TheRealCallie]

You keep talking about healthy food not having flavor. I don't really understand this. All of the healthy food I make has tons of flavor.
I think most people think healthy foods have to be bland and tasteless, but that's not true. It's all about how it's made.
Those "healthy" meals you get in the freezer section are bland, yes. But, if made properly, they could be delicious.

 

[Goblin]

All the things you guys are suggesting to flavor your healthy foods to make it healthier are unhealthy. Hot sauce has no nutritional value to it.

I don't have anything against healthy food. I like the taste of healthy food and probably eat more of it than most people i know. It was just something I thought about one day and decided to bring it up.

Some people seem to wonder if certain things are healthy or not. I feel like I've found an almost foolproof way of finding that out for most foods without the need to look at ingredients or asking a nutritionist lol. Healthier foods taste worse than unhealthier foods for the most part in my opinion. This might not be the same for all of you, but I feel like it is for most of America. Classic junk food that we are used to eating taste much better than organic green veggies. For different cuts of meat, you can also tell if it is healthier just by the taste. Fattier cuts of meat that are more tender and have more flavor are less healthier than the lean cuts of meat I don't like as much.

Depending on the hot sauce, there is nutritional value. Chocolate even has nutritional value.

There are (real or potential) health benefits to many things that aren't healthy as a diet staple if they're eaten in moderation, also. It's not so black-and-white. Even too much water can kill you: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_intoxication

Why does it matter if there are "unhealthy" elements to a food on such a small scale as hot sauce, though? That just sounds like nitpicking. You use extreme examples like pizza, fried chicken, and ice cream, but shoot down our examples because they contain something with only a little nutrition and a lot of sodium like a few squirts of hot sauce. If you must believe that healthy food tastes bad for some unfathomable reason, then that's your call. Your reasoning isn't at all convincing, though.

In theory, I could say that absolutely nothing is truly healthy because of pesticides, fertile soil that's been overused, etc.