Health experts: Ingredients in processed foods prevent healthy eating

CLARKSBURG — Fruits and vegetables are not as popular as chips and cookies, but the reason may be that processed foods have altered our sense of taste, health officials say.

Taste buds adapt to diet, according to Extension Specialist Gina Wood, the expanded food and nutrition program coordinator for West Virginia University Extension Service.

“If one eats a diet that’s high in sugar, salt and fat they develop a preference for those foods, and other foods may not taste good to them any longer,” she said.

Wood said some people never develop a taste for fresh foods because of having been fed highly processed, convenience-type foods and fast food from childhood. This is the second generation that’s unable to prepare a home-cooked meal, she added.