Sunday, September 12, 2010

Low Calcium AND Low Vegetable Intake...aka. "why are these vegetables not so nice?"

Research published last year examined a very interesting causal relationship

Given that,

In general, the population doesn't eat enough vegetables

AND

In general, the population is calcium deficient

COULD IT BE

That vegetable distaste, indeed bitterness, is a result of calcium's presence, or, does calcium content affect the bitterness of vegetables.

In conclusion, they found there was a correlation, however were cautious to establish causation, that because vegetables high in calcium were bitter, people don't eat them and are thus low in calcium. They investigated a rat model finding that rodents can indeed detect which foods are high in calcium and eat those foods when they are either calcium deficient, or genetically engineered to love eating calcium, and rather, when they are calcium-replete, choose to eat less of the calcium-full, i.e. bitter, foods.

Therefore, when choosing not to eat vegetables, or indeed when a client comes to you and says, my bones keep breaking, and bursting through my skin, and then I can't stop bleeding (Osteoporosis and haemophilia, the former obvious, the latter as calcium is a cofactor in the production of clotting factors), and I hate vegetables, maybe that would be the time to ask them, do you not like vegetables because of bitterness, if yes, then maybe they are deficient due to dietary choices.

Just a thought, but yeah, also if anyone ever asks you, "Hey, you should know, why is this collard so damn bitter?" You can reply "Why, my apprenticed friend, it is due to the calcium content."

WARNING - if they ask "Why is this radicchio so damn bitter" DO NOT reply with the above, instead reply "Due to, potentially excipient, or otherwise spirited, bitter compounds within it I believe, not calcium however."

There you go, a good ol' look at calcium and bitterness - I'm glad I know this now, the little angel of knowledge is hugging my heart :D

Reference - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2768385/

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