For hundreds of years, scientists have suspected a connection between our?personality traits?and?taste?preferences.?Anton Brillat-Savarin, the famous French gastronome, is quoted saying, “Tell me what you eat, and I will tell you who you are.”?

數(shù)百年來，科學家們一直懷疑我們的性格特征和口味偏好之間存在聯(lián)系。法國著名美食家安東·布里亞-薩瓦蘭曾說過：“告訴我你吃什么，我就能說出你是誰?！?/p>

Tell me what you eat, and I will tell you who you are.

告訴我你吃什么，我就能告訴你你是誰。

But what?influences?what we eat? It turns out that a symphony of elements influences our?dietary intake patterns. These elements include (but are not limited to) our psychological traits (and?mood?states), cognitive and perceptual processes, behavioral attributes, psychosocial (including cultural) environment, and interoceptive experience. Each of these elements, in turn, is driven by physiological, biological, neuropsychological, and environmental states that are constantly at play within us (figure 1) (see the?Nutritional Psychology Research Library).

但究竟是什么影響著我們的飲食習慣呢？原來，一系列復雜的因素共同作用于我們的飲食攝入模式。這些因素包括（但不限于）我們的心理特質（及情緒狀態(tài)）、認知和感知過程、行為特征、心理社會（包括文化）環(huán)境以及內臟感覺體驗。而這些因素又各自受到我們體內不斷變化的生理、生物、神經心理和環(huán)境狀態(tài)的驅動（見圖1）（請參閱營養(yǎng)心理學研究庫）。

Figure 1. Elements of the?diet-mental health relationship (DMHR)?informing?nutritional psychology?(NP)

圖1. 飲食與心理健康關系（DMHR）的元素，為營養(yǎng)心理學（NP）提供信息

Understanding the?diet-mental health relationship (DMHR)?involves a wealth of conceptual complexity. The burgeoning field of?nutritional psychology?is attempting to integrate this conceptual complexity into a singular infrastructure by which the conceptualization of the DMHR can grow (figure 1).?Nutritional psychology?involves understanding the myriad factors interconnecting our dietary intake with our psychological processes, functioning, and experience. A plethora of research exists (and is growing) to improve our understanding of these interconnections and is contained in the CNP?Research Libraries.?

理解飲食與心理健康關系（DMHR）涉及大量的概念復雜性。營養(yǎng)心理學這一新興領域正試圖將這些概念復雜性整合到一個單一的基礎設施中，以便DMHR的概念化能夠不斷發(fā)展（見圖1）。營養(yǎng)心理學涉及理解我們飲食攝入與心理過程、功能和體驗之間錯綜復雜的聯(lián)系。存在大量（且不斷增長）的研究來改善我們對這些相互關系的理解，這些研究包含在CNP研究庫中。

What is Guiding What We Eat?

是什么在引導我們的飲食？

On the surface, many of us believe that what we eat is guided by what we like and want to eat (or in the current dietary intake landscape additionally, what we?crave?to eat and what is available to eat). In fact, what we eat goes far deeper than simply wanting and liking certain foods. A host of involuntary factors, of which we are mostly unaware, influence our daily dietary intake including our?perceptions and preferences, personality,?mood, behavioral attributes, and even genetics (Neuroscientist News, 2022). Let’s begin by looking at?taste?perception, preference, and their connection with?personality traits.

從表面上看，我們中的許多人認為我們的飲食是由我們喜歡和想吃的食物（或在當前的飲食攝入環(huán)境中，我們渴望吃的食物以及可獲得的食物）所引導的。事實上，我們的飲食遠比僅僅想要和喜歡某些食物要復雜得多。許多我們大多未意識到的非自愿因素也在影響我們的日常飲食攝入，包括我們的感知和偏好、個性、情緒、行為特征，甚至遺傳（Neuroscientist News, 2022）。讓我們從味覺感知、偏好及其與個性特征的聯(lián)系開始探討。

Genetic Basis for?Taste?Perception?and its Connection with?Personality Traits

味覺感知的遺傳基礎及其與個性特征的聯(lián)系

Perceiving?taste?involves complex pathways that interface with multiple cranial nerves and areas in our brain. The five?taste?sensations (bitter, sweet, umami, sour, and salt) arise because of the activation of specific?taste?receptor cells on the lingual papillae on the tongue. Specific?genes?encode the different?taste?receptors. Varieties in these?genes?lead to the expression of different?proteins associated with different tasting abilities, preferences, and?personality traits. This serves as the genetic basis for?taste?and the?perception?of?taste.?

味覺感知涉及復雜的途徑，這些途徑與我們的多個腦神經和大腦區(qū)域相連。五種基本味覺（苦、甜、鮮、酸、咸）的產生是由于舌頭味蕾上的特定味覺受體細胞被激活。不同的味覺受體由特定的基因編碼。這些基因的不同變體導致與不同味覺能力、偏好和個性特征相關的不同蛋白質的表達。這構成了味覺及其感知的遺傳基礎。

Interestingly, sensory science divides people into?supertasters,?medium-tasters, and?non-tasters. The TAS2R38 gene, located on chromosome 7, provides the genetic basis for?taster status (Figure 2).??

有趣的是，感官科學將人們分為超味覺者、中味覺者和非味覺者。位于7號染色體上的TAS2R38基因提供了味覺者分類的遺傳基礎（圖2）。

Supertasters are defined as?individuals with uncommonly low gustatory thresholds and strong responses to moderate concentrations of?taste?stimuli?(Supertaster – APA Dictionary of?Psychology, n.d.). Supertasters have an unusually high number of?taste buds.?This gene in supertasters increases their?perception?of bitter flavors in foods.?

超味覺者被定義為具有異常低的味覺閾值和對中等濃度味覺刺激物產生強烈反應的人（“Supertaster – APA心理學詞典”，無日期）。超味覺者擁有異常多的味蕾。這種基因變異使得超味覺者對食物中的苦味感知更為強烈。

Varieties in genes lead to the expression of different proteins associated with different tasting abilities, preferences, and personality traits.

基因的不同變體導致與不同味覺能力、偏好和個性特征相關的不同蛋白質的表達。

For example, supertasters tend to find the?taste?of coffee to be very bitter. In relation to personality characteristics, studies have found that supertasters and medium-tasters tend to be more tense, apprehensive, and imaginative than non-tasters, while non-tasters are inclined to be more relaxed, placid, and practical (Mascie-Taylor et al., 1983).

例如，超味覺者往往覺得咖啡的味道非?？?。在個性特征方面，研究發(fā)現(xiàn)，超味覺者和中味覺者往往比非味覺者更加緊張、憂慮和富有想象力，而非味覺者則傾向于更加放松、平靜和務實（Mascie-Taylor等人，1983）。

Science also reveals a genetic basis for?sweet liking, identified by a locus on chromosome 16 (Figure 2). Researchers divide the population into three categories related to the liking for sweetness:?sweet-likers,?sweet-neutral, and?sweet dislikers. Regarding differences in the preferences for sweetness, studies have shown that these differences predicted intentions, prosocial personalities, and behaviors (Meier et al., 2012).?

科學還揭示了喜歡甜味的遺傳基礎，這由16號染色體上的一個位點決定（圖2）。研究人員根據(jù)對甜味的喜好將人群分為三類：喜歡甜味者、對甜味無感者和不喜歡甜味者。關于對甜味偏好的差異，研究表明，這些差異可以預測個體的意圖、親社會個性和行為（Meier等人，2012）。

Figure 2. The five?taste?sensations. The genetic basis for sweet liking is identified by chromosome 16, while chromosome 7 provides the genetic basis for?taster status

圖2. 五種基本味覺。喜歡甜味的遺傳基礎由16號染色體決定，而7號染色體則提供了味覺者分類的遺傳基礎

It is important to note that in addition to our?genes, our biochemical makeup also plays a role in our food?perception?and preference. For example, one study showed that salivary testosterone levels correlated with the amount of spice (Tabasco in this case) that participants chose to add to their food (Bègue et al., 2015).?

值得注意的是，除了基因外，我們的生化構成也在食物感知和偏好中發(fā)揮作用。例如，一項研究表明，唾液中的睪酮水平與參與者選擇添加到食物中的香料量（在這種情況下是塔巴斯科辣醬）呈正相關（Bègue等人，2015）。

Now that we’re aware of the genetic (and biochemical) basis for?taste?perception?and preference, and learned how our?genes?can influence personality, let’s look at how personality can influence food preference.?

既然我們已經了解了味覺感知和偏好的遺傳（和生化）基礎，并學習了基因如何影響個性，接下來讓我們看看個性如何影響食物偏好。

Personality and Food Preference

個性與食物偏好

Regarding food preferences, key factors of a person’s personality, including openness to experience (i.e., curiosity vs. caution), have been found to correlate with various aspects of food preference. For example, in a study by Conner et al. (2017), people with personality attributes like?openness?scored above average on preference for new food experiences. The controversy associated with such research, however, is that it has largely been conducted using self-rated food preferences, not in settings with actual food choices.

在食物偏好方面，一個人的個性的關鍵因素，包括對新體驗的開放性（即好奇心與謹慎之間的平衡），已被發(fā)現(xiàn)與食物偏好的各個方面相關。例如，在Conner等人（2017）的研究中，具有開放性等個性特征的人在喜歡新食物體驗方面的得分高于平均水平。然而，這類研究的一個爭議點是，它們大多是通過自我評估的食物偏好來進行的，而不是在實際選擇食物的環(huán)境中進行的。

Key factors of a person’s personality have been found to correlate with aspects of food preference.

個性與食物偏好的關鍵因素

Many studies have addressed this issue. For example, a 2016 study analyzed participants’ willingness to try new foods. In this study, bite-sized pieces of twelve food items were placed in front of each participant (these included: octopus, hearts of palm, seaweed, soya bean milk, blood sausage, Chinese sweet rice cake, pickled watermelon rind, raw fish, quail egg, star fruit, sheep milk cheese, and black beans). Findings showed that the most anxious participants were the?least willing?to try new foods (Otis, 2016). This has been supported by other publications showing that anxious patients exhibit greater food aversions (Spence, 2021).

許多研究已經探討了這個問題。例如，2016年的一項研究分析了參與者嘗試新食物的意愿。在這項研究中，研究人員在每個參與者面前放置了十二種食物的小塊樣品（包括：章魚、棕櫚芯、海藻、豆?jié){、血腸、中國甜年糕、腌西瓜皮、生魚片、鵪鶉蛋、楊桃、羊奶酪和黑豆）。研究結果表明，最焦慮的參與者最不愿意嘗試新食物（Otis，2016）。這一發(fā)現(xiàn)得到了其他研究的支持，這些研究表明焦慮患者表現(xiàn)出更強的食物厭惡（Spence，2021）。

The most anxious participants were the least willing to try new foods.

最焦慮的參與者最不愿意嘗試新食物

Taste?Perception?and its Influence on?Mood?and Behavior

味覺感知及其對情緒和行為的影響

Now that we’ve explored some interconnections between?genes,?taste?perception, and personality, let’s see how?taste?perception?can influence our?mood?and behaviors. An example study by Vi and Obrist (2018) showed that those experiencing a sour?taste?were more likely engage in risk-taking. This was measured using the standardized Balloon Analogue Risk-Taking (BART) task, a computerized gambling task. Participants were asked to virtually pump up a balloon on a computer screen, with an accumulated monetary?reward?at stake. After each pump, the balloon either explodes or increases in size based on a randomized algorithm, yielding greater?reward. Participants who had?tasted something sour (as compared to a neutral water stimulus) were more likely to keep inflating the virtual balloon, risking the loss of the?reward.?

既然我們已經探討了基因、味覺感知和個性之間的一些相互聯(lián)系，接下來讓我們看看味覺感知如何影響我們的情緒和行為。Vi和Obrist（2018）的一項研究就是一個很好的例子，該研究表明，體驗酸味的人更有可能進行冒險行為。這一結論是通過標準化的氣球模擬風險承擔（BART）任務來衡量的，這是一個計算機化的賭博任務。參與者被要求在計算機屏幕上虛擬地給氣球充氣，同時累積金錢獎勵。每次充氣后，氣球要么根據(jù)隨機算法爆炸，要么增大，從而獲得更大的獎勵。與接受中性水刺激的參與者相比，那些品嘗了酸味物質的參與者更有可能繼續(xù)給虛擬氣球充氣，從而冒著失去獎勵的風險。

A study exploring the interrelation between?taste?perception?and?mood?(Chan et al., 2013) showed that tasting something sweet made people feel temporarily more romantic. And that by having people remember an episode of romantic love, they would report some foods as being sweeter than did those who were asked to recall a jealous?memory.?

另一項探討味覺感知與情緒之間關系的研究（Chan等人，2013）表明，品嘗甜味食物會讓人暫時感覺更加浪漫。研究人員讓參與者回憶一段浪漫的愛情經歷，這些參與者報告說某些食物比那些被要求回憶嫉妒記憶的參與者感覺更甜。

In another study by Ren et al., (2014), researchers exposed a group of participants to the sweet?taste?of Oreo cookies. This exposure resulted in a greater interest in initiating relationships with a potential partner.?

Ren等人（2014）的另一項研究則揭示了甜味對人際關系的影響。研究人員讓一組參與者品嘗奧利奧餅干的甜味。這種甜味體驗導致參與者對與潛在伴侶建立關系的興趣增加。

A study by Greimel et al., (2006) found that prompting people to remember being mistreated at work resulted in bitter?tastes being rated as more intense, while watching a joyful film clip (compared to a sad movie clip) resulted in participants rating a sweet drink as more pleasant.

Greimel等人（2006）的研究揭示了情緒狀態(tài)對味覺感知的顯著影響。該研究發(fā)現(xiàn)，當引導人們回憶在工作中受到的不公待遇時，他們會對苦味食物的感知更為強烈，認為其味道更加苦澀。相反，當參與者觀看一段令人愉悅的電影片段（與觀看悲傷電影片段相比）時，他們會更傾向于將甜飲料評價為更加美味。

Taste?Perception?and Clinical Disorders

味覺感知與臨床疾病

Some research on?taste?perception?in the context of?mental health?shows that depressed patients have differences in?perception?of?taste. While some studies have reported no difference in?taste?perception?in depressed patients (Arrando, 2015; Nagai, et al., 2015), researchers Hur et al. (2018) found that the prevalence of altered smell and?taste?among patients with major depressive disorder was 39.8% and 23.7% respectively.

在心理健康的背景下，對味覺感知的研究表明，抑郁癥患者存在味覺感知上的差異。盡管一些研究（如Arrando, 2015; Nagai等人, 2015）報告了抑郁癥患者與正常人在味覺感知上沒有顯著差異，但Hur等人（2018）的研究發(fā)現(xiàn)，在患有重度抑郁癥的患者中，嗅覺和味覺改變的發(fā)生率分別為39.8%和23.7%。

These changes in?taste?perception?are hypothesized to be due to several?mechanisms, but one?mechanism?seems to involve neurochemical changes that happen in our brain due to either emotional or pathological processes (e.g.,?depression?leads to elevation of inflammatory?cytokines?like interleukin 6). These changes can result in actual changes in the gustatory system.?

這些味覺感知的變化被認為是由多種機制引起的，其中一個重要機制涉及大腦中由于情感或病理過程（如抑郁癥導致的炎癥細胞因子如白介素6水平升高）而發(fā)生的神經化學變化。這些變化可能會導致味覺系統(tǒng)的實際改變。

It is hypothesized that changed?taste?thresholds could be attributed to reduced?serotonin?and noradrenaline?levels in depressed patients, as suggested by Heath et al. (2006) (Figure 3). This proposed?mechanism?was supported by another study (Kim et al., 2017), which found reduced expression of 5‐HT1A receptors for?serotonin?in the?taste?cells of rats that developed?anhedonia?— a common symptom of?depression. Case reports demonstrate that a change in?taste?is a neglected symptom in depressed patients that is worthy of further investigation (Miller & Naylor, 1989; Mizoguchi et al., 2012).?

Heath等人（2006）提出的假設認為，抑郁癥患者味覺閾值的變化可能與血清素（5-羥色胺）和去甲腎上腺素水平的降低有關（如圖3所示）。這一機制得到了Kim等人（2017）的研究支持，他們發(fā)現(xiàn)，在出現(xiàn)快感缺失（抑郁癥的一個常見癥狀）的大鼠中，其味覺細胞中的5-HT1A血清素受體表達減少。此外，病例報告也表明，味覺改變是抑郁癥患者中被忽視的一個癥狀，值得進一步深入研究（Miller & Naylor, 1989; Mizoguchi等人, 2012）。

Figure 3. Human gustatory pathway. Variations in?serotonin?levels are associated with different thresholds for certain?tastes like bitter and sweet (Heath, 2006).

圖3. 人類味覺通路。血清素水平的變化與某些味覺（如苦和甜）的閾值變化相關聯(lián)（Heath, 2006）。

Research also shows that patients with panic disorders can have exhibited reduced sensitivity to bitterness (DeMet et al., 1989), while anxiety levels are positively correlated with the?taste?thresholds for bitterness and saltiness (Heath et al., 2006).?

研究還表明，驚恐障礙患者對苦味的敏感性可能會降低(DeMet et al.， 1989)，而焦慮水平與苦味和咸味的味覺閾值呈正相關(Heath et al.， 2006)。

According to Hur et al. (2018), it may be advisable for primary care providers to screen their patients for?depression?or other psychiatric conditions when they report changes in?taste?or smell.

根據(jù)Hur等人(2018)的研究，當患者報告味覺或嗅覺發(fā)生變化時，建議初級保健提供者篩查患者是否患有抑郁癥或其他精神疾病。

Conclusion

結論

In this article, we’ve had a little ‘taste’ of how our?genes?influence our?taste?perception?and preferences. The DMHR plot thickens when we begin to be aware of how these?perceptions and preferences can interplay with our personality,?mood, and behaviors (figure 4).

在這篇文章中，我們對基因如何影響我們的味覺和偏好有了一點“了解”。當我們開始意識到這些感知和偏好如何與我們的個性、情緒和行為相互作用時，DMHR的情節(jié)就會變得更加復雜(圖4)。

Figure 4. Interconnections between?genes,?taste?perception, and preference, behaviors, personality, and?mood.

圖4. 基因、味覺感知與偏好、行為、個性與情緒之間的相互聯(lián)系

For example, we learned how anxious individuals can prefer a narrower range of food while people with personality attributes like openness typically score above average on preferences for new food experiences. Intriguingly, differences in food behavior and?taste?perception?have been linked with circulating levels of certain?neurotransmitters?like?serotonin?and can?affect?taste?perception?in clinical disorders.?

例如，我們了解到焦慮的個體往往偏好更為有限的食物種類，而那些具有開放性等個性特征的人則在新食物體驗的偏好上通常得分高于平均水平。這揭示了個性特征對食物選擇的重要影響。更有趣的是，食物行為和味覺感知的差異與體內某些神經遞質（如血清素）的循環(huán)水平密切相關，這些差異在臨床疾病中也可能對味覺感知產生影響。

While not lending to a conclusive understanding of the factors involved in dietary intake, our goal with this article is to provide you with a new awareness of the interconnection that occurs between your?genes, personality, emotions, and food-related behaviors and preferences.??

盡管本文未能為飲食攝入所涉及的因素提供全面而確定的解釋，但我們的目標是通過這篇文章，讓您對基因、個性、情緒以及與食物相關的行為和偏好之間錯綜復雜的相互聯(lián)系產生新的認識。

To learn more,

進一步學習

visit the CNP?Diet and Personality?and?Diet and Sensory-Perception?research categories in the?NPRL.?

訪問NPRL中的CNP飲食與個性及飲食與感官感知研究分類

References

Arrondo, G., Murray, G. K., Hill, E., Szalma, B., Yathiraj, K., Denman, C., & Dudas, R. B. (2015).?Hedonic?and disgust?taste?perception?in borderline personality disorder and?depression.?The British journal of?psychiatry: the journal of mental science,?207(1), 79–80. https://doi.org/10.1192/bjp.bp.114.150433

Bègue, L., Bricout, V., Boudesseul, J., Shankland, R., & Duke, A. A. (2015). Some like it hot: Testosterone predicts laboratory?eating behavior?of spicy food.?Physiology & Behavior,?139, 375–377. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.PHYSBEH.2014.11.061

Chan, K. Q., Tong, E. M. W., Tan, D. H., & Koh, A. H. Q. (2013). What do love and jealousy?taste?like??Emotion (Washington, D.C.),?13(6), 1142–1149. https://doi.org/10.1037/A0033758

Conner, T. S., Thompson, L. M., Knight, R. L., Flett, J. A. M., Richardson, A. C., & Brookie, K. L. (2017). The role of?personality traits?in young adult fruit and vegetable consumption.?Frontiers in?Psychology,?8(FEB). https://doi.org/10.3389/FPSYG.2017.00119

DeMet, E., Stein, M. K., Tran, C., Chicz-DeMet, A., Sangdahl, C., & Nelson, J. (1989). Caffeine?taste?test for panic disorder: Adenosine receptor supersensitivity.?Psychiatry?Research,?30(3), 231–242. https://doi.org/10.1016/0165-1781(89)90014-0

Greimel, E., Macht, M., Krumhuber, E., & Ellgring, H. (2006). Facial and?affective reactions to?tastes and their modulation by sadness and joy.?Physiology & Behavior,?89(2), 261–269. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.PHYSBEH.2006.06.002

Heath, T. P., Melichar, J. K., Nutt, D. J., & Donaldson, L. F. (2006). Human?taste?thresholds are modulated by?serotonin?and noradrenaline.?The Journal of?Neuroscience,?26(49), 12664–12671.?https://doi.org/10.1523/JNEUROSCI.3459-06.2006

Hur, K., Choi, J. S., Zheng, M., Shen, J., & Wrobel, B. (2018). Association of alterations in smell and?taste?with?depression?in older adults.?Laryngoscope Investigative Otolaryngology,?3(2), 94–99.?https://doi.org/10.1002/LIO2.142

Kim, D., Chung, S., Lee, S. H., Koo, J. H., Lee, J. H., & Jahng, J. W. (2017). Decreased expression of 5-HT1A in the circumvallate?taste?cells in an animal model of?depression.?Archives of Oral Biology,?76, 42–47. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.ARCHORALBIO.2017.01.005

Mascie-Taylor, C. G. N., McManus, I. C., MacLarnon, A. M., & Lanigan, P. M. (1983). The association between phenylthiocarbamide (PTC) tasting ability and psychometric variables.?Behavior Genetics,?13(2), 191–196. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01065667?

Meier, B. P., Moeller, S. K., Riemer-Peltz, M., & Robinson, M. D. (2012). Sweet?taste?preferences and experiences predict prosocial inferences, personalities, and behaviors.?Journal of Personality and Social?Psychology,?102(1), 163–174. https://doi.org/10.1037/A0025253

Mizoguchi, Y., Monji, A., & Yamada, S. (2012). Dysgeusia successfully treated with sertraline.?The Journal of Neuropsychiatry?and Clinical?Neurosciences,?24(2). https://doi.org/10.1176/APPI.NEUROPSYCH.11040095

Nagai, M., Matsumoto, S., Endo, J., Sakamoto, R., & Wada, M. (2015). Sweet?taste?threshold for sucrose inversely?

Neuroscientist News. (2022, June 14). Do our?genes?determine what we eat? https://neurosciencenews.com/genetics-taste-perception-20833/

correlates with?depression?symptoms in female college students in the luteal phase.?Physiology & behavior,?141, 92–96. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.physbeh.2015.01.003

Otis, L. P. (1984). Factors influencing the willingness to?taste?unusual foods.?Psychological Reports,?54, 739–745.

Ren, D., Tan, K., Arriaga, X. B., & Chan, K. Q. (2014). Sweet love: The effects of sweet?taste?experience on romantic?perceptions.?Http://Dx.Doi.Org/10.1177/0265407514554512,?32(7), 905–921.?https://doi.org/10.1177/0265407514554512

Smith, W., Powell, E. K., & Ross, S. (1955). Manifest anxiety and food aversions.?Journal of Abnormal and Social?Psychology,?50(1), 101–104.?https://doi.org/10.1037/H0049253

Supertaster – APA dictionary of?psychology. (n.d.). Retrieved January 28, 2022, from https://dictionary.apa.org/supertaster

Spence C. (2021). What is the link between personality and food behavior?.?Current research in food science,?5, 19–27.?https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crfs.2021.12.001

Vi, C. T., & Obrist, M. (2018). Sour promotes risk-taking: An investigation into the effect of?taste?on risk-taking behaviour in humans.?Scientific Reports,?8(1). https://doi.org/10.1038/S41598-018-26164-3