Small Changes, Big Results

Most kids can reel off the four basic flavors: sweet, sour, salty, and bitter. But in 2000, a receptor for a fifth taste was identified: umami, which is loosely defined as a savory, meaty flavor derived from the amino acid glutamate. Umami is present in meat, fish, cheese, soy sauce, mushrooms, tomatoes, and green tea. And research is showing that eating nonfattening—yet hearty-tasting—umami-flavored foods can trick your body into feeling full. The journal Physiology & Behavior reported this year that male rats that drank umami-flavored water ate less and gained less weight than those that were fed the same amount but without umami flavoring.