Blocking Hormone Lowers Sensitivity To Sugar, Opening Door For Food Additives Or Drugs

Frankenfoods and drugs.

A hormone that helps to regulate blood sugar levels may also influence a person's sensitivity to sweet-tasting foods, according to a new study from researchers at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. They found that blocking the tongue's ability to respond to the hormone known as glucagon decreases the taste system's sensitivity to sweetness. That is, changing the actions of the hormone glucagon could control how foods taste, according to the study published online June 14 in the Federation for American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) Journal.

"An interesting possibility resulting from our research is that the development of new food additives could change the way you perceive your food, making it taste more or less sweet," said senior author Steven D. Munger, Ph.D., associate professor of anatomy and neurobiology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. "From a food industry perspective, such additives could be used to enhance flavor. From a therapeutic perspective, they could be used to treat patients who under-eat or overeat."

It is not as if glucagon has only one effect.

Prepare for the law of unintended consequences to begin operation.