A question came up on the podcast this week that sounds trivial, but really isn’t: Is something wrong with me if I don’t like a food everyone else loves? It came from my co-host, an Inner West Sydneysider surrounded by avocado on toast… who still can’t stand avocado. And the answer is no. Food preferences aren’t a character flaw. They’re biology, memory, culture, and expectation working together.
What we call “taste” isn’t just the tongue. Flavour is a combination of taste, smell, texture, and what your brain expects to happen next. Avocado is a perfect example. For some people, it’s not the flavour, it’s the texture. Creamy but not smooth. Soft but not liquid. If your brain grew up associating avocado with sweet dishes and suddenly meets it in sushi or on toast, that mismatch alone can trigger dislike. That’s not fussiness. That’s neuroscience.
Smell plays an even bigger role than most people realise. It’s why airline food tastes flat. Dry cabin air dulls your sense of smell, which means flavour collapses. It’s also why people add more salt, sugar, or fat when smell is reduced, and why spicy tomato juice or salty nuts suddenly make food more enjoyable in the air. When smell drops, the brain asks for intensity.
This is where ultra-processed food becomes a problem. Artificial flavours give your brain the promise of nutrients without delivering them. Something tastes like banana, but there’s no banana nutrition behind it. The brain keeps searching, so you keep eating. Add high sugar, salt, fat, and soft textures that disappear quickly in the mouth, and appetite signals get confused. Pleasure becomes about intensity, not nourishment.
The goal isn’t to force yourself to like everything. Some dislikes are genetic. Some tastes are acquired. Some just need better preparation. The real reset is understanding why you like what you like, eating real food most of the time, and listening to your body without shame. And if you still hate avocado after all that, that’s fine. You can be perfectly healthy without it… even if Inner West cafes disagree.
We are so grateful for your support, so we’d like to offer you a special Renovatio deal:
PS: This session was recorded LIVE, thank you to everyone who tuned in!
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