You Taste Food Differently When You’re In A Relationship

People change when they’re in a relationship — and this includes their taste buds. A new study published in the journal Appetite suggests that couples tend to develop similar taste in food the longer they’re together.

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Researchers from Poland and Germany followed 100 different couples who had been together from three months to 45 years. They asked everyone to sniff and rate a variety of scents (like rose, eucalyptus, smoked meat and leather), and also had them taste and rate the five flavours — sweet, salty, sour, umami and bitter.

The study found that the longer a couple had been together, the more likely they were to share the same preferences in both smell and in taste. Interestingly, their satisfaction or happiness in the relationship made no difference.

So how does this happen? Scientists have a few theories, including the fact that some people may choose to be with a partner who shares their food preferences from the start. Additionally, couples who live together tend to end up eating similar foods.

“Shared environment and habits, and consequently exposure to similar olfactory and gustatory stimuli, might together shape similar preferences in both partners,” the researchers wrote.

So if you want to eat healthier, you may want to choose a mate who loves Brussels Sprouts — even if you can’t stand them (yet). Can’t hurt, right?