Imagine taking a bite of one of your favorite foods. During this moment you are engaging all five primary senses. You see the food, feel the texture and smell the aroma. Perhaps you hear the sizzle as it cooks or the crunch as you bite. But chiefly amongst these experiences, you are tasting the meal. Have you ever wondered how our sense of taste works?

Salivary glands

When you smell, see or anticipate food, a signal from your brain increases blood flow to the salivary glands, causing an increased production of saliva. Saliva contains specialized enzymes that begin to break down starches and fats in the food you eat. Once the food is broken down, different chemical components from the food spread across the surface of tongue, which is covered in small bumps. These bumps are called taste papillae and help you detect taste.

Papillae

There are three different types of papillae on the tongue. They are different sizes and shapes and contain different amounts of taste buds.

• Fungiform papillae are the smallest and most numerous. There are between 200 and 400 fungiform papillae on the main surface of the tongue, each containing three to five taste buds. Fungiform papillae also contain sensory cells for touch and temperature to tell your brain more about the food you’re eating.
• Circumvallate papillae, near the base of the tongue, are much larger. You only have between seven and 12 of these papillae, but they contribute a great deal to taste because each contains several thousand taste buds.
• Foliate papillae are also larger in size and are found on the edges of the base of your tongue. You have about 20 foliate papillae, each containing several hundred taste buds.

Taste buds

Each taste bud has between 10 and 50 sensory cells that are connected to many nerve fibers that relay information to the brain. You might have heard that each part of the tongue tastes a different type of taste, but the truth is that we can taste all different tastes everywhere on our tongues. Some research indicates that individual taste buds respond to several different taste qualities and intensities.

Types of taste

The basic tastes are sweet, salty, umami, sour and bitter. Each has different chemical components that trigger your taste buds. When a sensory cell on your taste buds reacts with one of these sensory stimuli, a reaction occurs to transmit a signal to the brain.

In the brain, these signals are integrated with other senses and interpreted by the gustatory cortex. The gustatory cortex is a brain structure that perceives taste. The different tastes are separated in the gustatory cortex by other areas—the bitter cortex can trigger an “alarm” to avoid potentially harmful foods, and the sweet cortex can drive your appetite response.

As you enjoy your next meal, consider the complex interplay of senses that make tasting possible. From the initial anticipation that kicks your saliva into gear, to the intricate networks of taste buds and neurons that communicate with your brain, each bite is a testament to the sophisticated biological systems at work.

Relish the flavors and give a nod to the science that helps you taste the difference between merely eating and sensing the world around you.