Have you felt like puking whenever you come across a healthy dish? Trust us; you are not the only one. Loads of people find healthy foods less appetizing and mostly associate these foods with something that tastes horrible.
In fact, most of these people would rather munch on a bag full of chips instead of having just one small bowl of salad.
But why does healthy food taste bad? Is it because they have loads of vitamins and minerals in them? Well, we will get to the root of the cause and offer you some suggestions to allow you to enjoy healthy foods.
Yes, you will even enjoy zucchini noodles or cauliflower rice after going through our suggestions!
Why Do Healthy Dishes Taste Bad?
Let us get one thing straight; if you read this article, you probably have not had a healthy food dish for a prolonged time, right? Well, that has made you lose touch with your natural food instincts. And according to many, this is the prime reason people find healthy foods taste terrible.
But losing touch with the natural food instinct is not the only problem here. The thing is, the Standard American diet consists of highly processed foods and packaged foods packed with sugar, salt, preservatives, or chemicals. And it is something that many of us have been stuck with since childhood.
Being brought up with such food has made our taste buds different. In other words, unhealthy foods are the only foods our taste buds like due to how highly exposed we have been to those foods since childhood.
You might not believe it, but you are probably addicted to sugar. Yes, loads of unhealthy foods have an amped-up amount of sugar. And the worst part is that while many of the packaging states that they contain 0 grams of sugar, they still have a lot of hidden sugar.
Don’t you think that you are addicted to sugar? Just try to avoid sweet foods for a day and see how restless you feel.
Yes, one! And the same thing is applicable when you do the reverse. If you restrict yourself from having too much sugar, you will feel your head spinning around when you eat just one sugary glazed donut.
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How to Make the Transition?
So, can you make the transition even when you feel like vomiting immediately after trying to have just one healthy meal? Of course! And we can assure you that after making that transition, you will feel the same vomiting tendency when you eat unhealthy food after a prolonged time.
However, just like how your taste buds have grown to like unhealthy foods over the years, making a complete transition will also take some time. But it is possible. All you need to do is stay determined and keep these factors in your mind:
Make Small Changes:
Most nutrition experts recommend you make small changes if you want to shift to a new diet. Wondering why?
As we have stated, your tastebuds got accustomed to the taste of unhealthy foods when you had them for a prolonged time. And you will not be capable of making a complete transition if you make too many changes in your food habit.
Instead, make two to three changes for the meals throughout the week. This gradual change will make it easier for your tastebuds to accept the changes. Let us give you an example to make things clear as water.
If you have too much regular soda, try to replace it with diet soda once or twice a week. Eventually, you will find yourself liking the diet soda. Gradually, you can transition from drinking soda to drinking only water by following the same trick.
Another thing that you should remember is that when you are choosing a healthy diet, there is no right or wrong. Experiment with the healthy foods that work the best and stick with them.
However, no matter what you do, do not just jump on a healthy diet suddenly. That will make the transition much harder to accomplish.
Adjust Your Expectations:
One of the main reasons people find it challenging to stick with a healthy diet is their expectations. It would help if you accepted that healthy food is not going to taste amazing after you have had processed and unhealthy foods for years. It does not align with reality.
Again, we know that you can just change your expectations regarding the taste of the food and accept that it will taste worse, and motivate yourself to have it daily. For that reason, you should give yourself at least 6 to 12 weeks. In this period, try out different healthy foods.
On that note, you might know by now that you can make small twists on the recipes to make healthy foods taste amazing. These slight twists can involve healthy dressings, hummus, or other spices that will add a kick to your healthy dishes. Check what works the best for your taste buds and stick with it.
Also, did you know that toddlers will need ten times or higher amount of time to get accustomed to a specific diet? Well, imagine the case to be the same for you. If you have never eaten squash or dishes made with squash before, you are going back in time and developing the taste to like the squash by having it right now.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Is healthy eating boring?
According to a survey conducted by the independent, 47% of the people find healthy food boring, while the other half don’t. So, I guess it varies from person to person depending on their taste.
Why do so many rich people come to like the healthier food?
Rich and educated people are often well-aware of the huge advantages of eating healthy and thus prefer healthy food.
What is the number 1 healthiest food in the world?
It’s hard to decide on a single item. However, according to goodnet, it’s spinach.
Final Words
If you are still thinking about why healthy food tastes bad, it is because you have grown up eating unhealthy foods. Your taste buds are accustomed to a high amount of sugar, salt, preservatives, and chemicals.
But we assure you that you can make the change if you stick with what we have discussed above.
