bitter.sweet

Tonight I'm making pesto...from scratch...my mouth is salivating...but I am not without apprehension.

Apprehension?

Over pesto?

Let me explain......

several years ago after a delish meal of homemade pesto, I slipped into my PJ's, squeezed some toothpaste onto my brush and had the oddest experience.

The toothpaste didn't taste like toothpaste at all, instead, there was an overwhelming taste of bitterness

I came downstairs and asked Marco and the girls to try the toothpaste..

does it taste weird to you?

nope, all fine....

so strange, I thought and took myself off to bed...

Over the next week things got worse

EVERY single thing I ate had the same taste..bitter, bitter, bitter!

apples, yoghurt, salad. chocolate, chicken, everything bitter!

No differentiation whatsoever between foods....

It was like all of the different areas of my taste buds had been switched off

and turned to bitter sensors, sweetness, salty, sour, umami, all gone

bitterness the only one left, crazy right?

Can you imagine?

I'm not really a sugar fiend but oh how I wanted to taste it again!

Obviously it started to freak me out!

How could a donut taste bitter?

A spoon of honey bitter?

It was the strangest thing...

So I looked it up and found it had a name

Pine mouth ( of course my coworkers at the time had lot of fun with that!)

I found that there were lots of people experiencing this strange phenomenon after eating pine nuts

and that thankfully it would resolve in a week or two..here's a little research update in case it ever happens to you.....

The New South Wales Food Authority recently completed a study on Pine Mouth as far as the causes of it and any concerns linked to it. This condition goes by a couple of names, including Pine Mouth and Pine Nut Syndrome. It is the condition when someone who eats pine nuts regularly starts to taste something metallic and bitter all of the time. The problem can last for up to two weeks, but generally goes away within a few days.

The New Study

The new study focused on the number of cases reported of the syndrome and some interesting findings were noted.

The number of Pine Mouth cases have increased since 2009.
Pine Mouth seems to be caused by a particular type of pine nut.
The species that is a problem is called Pinus Armandii and it is exported from China.

Response to the Study

Because of this new study, changes have been made by the Chinese government. Now, this particular type of pine nut is no longer exported to other countries from China. This is a method used to avoid other people suffering from Pine Mouth.

Another change that has been made was by the Codex Alimentarius Commission which added the particular species called Pinus Armandii to its inedible foods list. Additionally, Pinus Massoniana has been removed by the commission for the safety of consumers. Although, this second species has not yet been linked to the problem of Pine Mouth

Two things I have taken from this experience

the experience of sweetness is so much more potently appreciated after the bitterness passes

i love pesto too much to be put off for life!