Wellness in Action: “Why Does My Food Taste Like Cardboard?”



This week the residents at Judson Manor in Cleveland, Ohio participated in an interactive taste and smell presentation.  We discussed how taste is very individualized depending on how many taste bud receptors one has and how our tastes may change as we age.   We talked about flavor and the importance of our sense of smell when we eat and how taste and smell can impact our appetites due to medication usage, certain diseases, and advancing age. We also discussed how flavor is a combination of taste, smell, and mouth feel.  Using food samples residents were able to determine their own taste and flavor profiles.  It was fun to share the value of food and nutrition and how it enriches the lives of seniors every day.