Your genes are responsible for a whole lot of things about you! Genes determine things like your eye color and your hair color. I guess is isn’t so surprising to learn that your genes determine if you like, or hate, certain foods. When it comes to cilantro, the gene that determines if you like it (or hate it) is connected to your sense of smell.
Your biological mother, and biological father, each contributed to your genetic makeup. Genes get passed down from one generation to the next. This explains why you look like some of your ancestors, and why you share their eye color. The genes that you have in common with the other members of your family tree might provide some clues about health conditions that you need to watch out for.
On the other hand, not everything about a person is determined by his or her genes. The environment that a person was raised in, or currently lives in, can also have an influence on an individual’s personal preferences. What makes you unique is a combination of “nature and nurture”.
What you may not realize is that your genes also play a role in determining what foods you like, and what foods simply cannot stand to eat. Researchers at 23andMe have identified two genetic variants that change the way a person perceives cilantro.
Cilantro, which is also called coriander, is an herb. It is traditionally found in a variety of Mexican foods. Lately, there seems to be a trend to put some cilantro into other foods, as well. There are many people who love it, and plenty who hate it. According to a paper that was published in the Journal “Flavour”, 21% of people who have East Asian ancestry, 17% of people who have European ancestry, and 14% of people who have African ancestry dislike cilantro.
Researchers at 23andMe surveyed the genes of about 30,000 people. They found that there there are two genetic variants that affect how a person perceives cilantro. At least one of those two genes is linked to how a person senses smells. Since around 80% of what we taste is influenced by what we smell, this has an effect on whether or not a person likes cilantro. This could be why some people identify cilantro as tasting “soapy”.
Earlier this year, researchers found that there was a genetic reason why some people do not like the smell of pork. Researchers found that the people who didn’t like the way pork smelled had two functional copies of a gene that linked to an odor receptor that detects androstenone, (a hormone found in male pigs).
Image by You As A Machine on Flickr