Lost my "taste" for sweets :(...WHERE did it go??

[Midnight_Merlot]

I grew up being a "cookie monster". Mom never bought much sweets or soda, &, at times, I found myself eating bitter baking chocolate just to appease my brain into thinking that - "hey...it may taste like crud, but..its STILL chocolate at least." Literally, there was NO cake, pie, ice cream, nor cookie which did not tempt me.
Also, my mom used to go on & on how soda was just "sugar water", & complained about how sweet it was. I thought the lady was insane...just couldn't understand why she preferred diet soda & unsweetened tea & such. ...however, she DID have a "soft spot" for desserts.
Now that I am much older however, I absolutely can't stand much of ANYTHING that is sweet. When I see folks that go "ga-ga" for cakes & whatnot, I feel a bit out of place even. You honestly could not pay me to eat a slice of pie, donut or a cookie etc. now. I detest things like that now, &, would probabally get ill if I imagined forced to do so. Just looking at a box of Twinkies turns my stomach. I also, now too agree w/my mum that soda is just too sweet. *yech*
I've been like this going on 10 yrs. or so...perhaps longer even, just maybe not as extreme. I DO however like candied sweet potatoes , gummi bears, Starbursts & Skittles. But, its rare that I eat them. I have hypo-gleymecia ?sp?, so..I tend to make sure that I have these few things hidden for when needed (thankfully, not often).
I suppose my question that I would like to ask other members, is...have any of you guys had such a drastic revulsion to any foods/food groups such as I have? I really can't sort out or remember when or why I stopped eating these kinds of foods. Nowadays, my little "yummies" come from the deli in meats & cheeses.

 

[joesfolk]

Hummm.... I seem to have the opposite problem. I could live on sweets but protein can be unbearably difficult for me to eat at times. It doesn't happen always but it happens frequently where I just can't stand protein. I'll cook it for my family and maybe I'll serve some for myself but after one bite I just can't take it. The trouble is that I have a condition that requires that I concentrate my food choices on proteins. So I do medical protein powder when this happens. (Actually I do it every day but increase it when I can't take the real food proteins). I have a friend who tells me that this is an old lady thing. Well, that may be true, I don't know. I'm sure it's no comfort to you but I would rather have your problem than mine.

 

[cmarchibald]

Unfortunately I cannot relate to either of you on this matter. When I was a baby instead of buying baby food my mother just put whatever we were having for dinner in the food processor and serve it up. The list of things I do not enjoy eating is very short:

Liver (because of the texture and taste)
Oysters (only because of the texture)

And having spent considerable time in SE Asia I feel compelled to include some of Thailand's favorite snacks:

Bugs (because....ew)

But that's about it! Everything else is fair game.

Midnight, if you're not big on sweets you should try a few German desserts. German desserts are famously "semi-sweet". I grew up on those and don't like many American desserts which are *very* sweet, or those I do like I can only take in limited quantities.

Give me a piece of authentic black forest cake ANY day though....

 

[taxlady]

I used to put sugar in my coffee, but now I find that gross.

 

[Zhizara]

I got sick and tired of pepper on everything. I use it on cottage cheese, but that's about it.

I've also developed a dislike for the taste of bell peppers. This one caught me by surprise. Bell peppers were too expensive for me for a long time. A few months ago, they were on sale, so I bought a couple and added them to everything. I discovered I didn't like them at all anymore.

 

[justplainbill]

My taste tolerance for overly sweet beverages, cakes and cookies has steadily increased over the past 30 - 35 years. Heavily sugared foods leave me with a sour aftertaste.

 

[Mimizkitchen]

It's just the opposite for me... As a child I hated sweets, never ate them, but as of the past few years I can't live without them... I am a major sweet food junkie now, I love it all, with the exception of any hard candy or anything gummie...

 

[betterthanabox]

I have recently found mushrooms rather revolting. Which is odd, but I used to love them. I also cannot drink a whole soda anymore. I find that it is far too sweet and not enjoyable. I am also finding that if I have a lot of sugar in the evening when I wake up in the morning I am really out of whack. I have found that warmed milk with a heavy dose of cinnamon helps me. I have been trying hard to eat better and cut out sweets, but I write a cooking blog, and people really like desserts, so I try to put them on frequently, which means I have to eat it.

 

[CWS4322]

I've noticed that sweets don't do it for me anymore. This has been true for four-five years now. Protein, however, I am a protein junky. My idea of the perfect snack is a hardcooked egg with pepper on it (I was thrilled when Dr. Oz said that eating an egg a day is good for you). My DH is a "veggie" nut. His idea of veggies (not counting potatoes or corn--those are starches) would be five every night--steamed beans, broccoli and cauliflower, summer squash, kale or swiss chard is his favorite combination. I swear he was a hippo in another life (hippos eat 50 kg of vegetation / day). I don't know anyone else who eats veggies like he does. And bread--almost a loaf / day. And no, he is not overweight. He's the energizer bunny. I do think as we age, our tastes do change. This is one of the issues re: the elderly and nutrition. It can take as much as 12 times as much seasoning for someone who is elderly to taste the seasoning.

 

[justplainbill]

Creamed chopped chard or kale are two of my favs, carrots being one of my least favorites. Many times the chard taste a bit 'sweet' even though it may be a tad bitter.

 

[Katie H]

As I've aged, I'm in my 60s, I've observed my tastes (all of them) changing. When I was very young, you couldn't get me near Brussels sprouts or asparagus. Now I love them. From birth until I was in about my late 40s I was violently allergic to cooked carrots. Raw carrots were perfectly fine. Now, however, I can eat a bushel of cooked carrots with no adverse effects. Don't know what happened there, but the maple-glazed carrots we had for dinner last night were heaven on a plate to me.

As for sweets, I did notice that as the years progressed I wasn't nearly as interested in them. I was the world's biggest sweets junkie, particularly chocolate, when I was young(er). Now, I would be hard-pressed to find any chocolate in the house.

I think what has happened for me over time is that I've somehow struck a balance. I really relish a meal that has a nice mixture of protein, carbs and fats, as well as a reasonable balance among them.

I have to add, though, that when I was growing up there was no real fast-food around and junk food (particularly sweets) was not very prolific and my parents just didn't have those things in the house, except for special times. Birthday cake was a REAL treat!

Having said all this, I still truly enjoy a delicious piece of mile-high chocolate cake...but not as often as years ago.

 

[Claire]

Absolutely! in my last couple years of menopause, my sense of scent went haywire. Quickly. I'd made Thanksgiving dinner, and the next Friday as I was making the stock, it smelled repulsive. I thought maybe I hadn't refridgerated the carcass quickly enough and it spoiled? Then hubby woke and took in a deep breath and kept going on about how he just loved this as much as he loved the dinner itself. The stock was fine. But that started a two year period where very little, no matter how much I loved it, many foods just smelled and tasted repulsive. It gradually went away except I'm still not crazy about two things I used to love -- cucumbers and watermelon still aren't appealing. If I was going to permanently dislike something, couldn't it have been something fattening?

Also, a lot of times if you give up one thing, your taste for sweets can drastically change. Giving up smoking and/or drinking, even caffeine, can bring on a sweets craving in those who never liked them before. If you change your diet, for any reason (whether voluntary aka becoming a vegetarian, or health dictated, i.e, diabetes, cholesterol control, blood pressure, allergies) it can eventually change your cravings, your taste buds, your sense of scent.

 

[chopper]

I used to like white chocolate, but it doesn't apeal to me now, and I can actually pass it up (not worth the calories). I have always enjoyed milk chocolate, but now I just LOVE a very dark chocolate.

 

[AnnieDrews]

Within the last year or two, I have really grown to dislike the taste of beef in several forms....I KNOW!! I still love a good steak now and then or a good grilled burger, but otherwise, I'm not much interested. I think I've just had enough roast beef, meat loaf, etc. to last me for a while. I honestly prefer chicken, pork, turkey or shrimp/fish nowadays.

 

[betterthanabox]

I am only 23, and have had changes in taste. I am not convinced it is just due to getting past child bearing years.

 

[Midnight_Merlot]

Thanks for the replies! *hugs* I'm so VERY glad that I at least asked my question in the first place. I really was kinda-sorta thinking that there was perhaps something may be very wrong w/me...I don't think I do so much anymore though...guess it can be "normal" for folks to decide for whatever reason that tastes change here & there.
What really kinda "spooked" me, was, yesterday, DH & I watched on the food network a show called something like "Worlds Greatest Buffets" (or something similar name-wise). Anyhow, they kept showing places that show-cased the all you can eat dessert bars. The people on the show were like "OMG - *heaven*", &, had full plates of every kind of sweets on the planet. They looked really excited to me, but, as I was watching, when they showed the desserts, I was like "YUCK - go back to the crab legs, or shrimp" (or any of the other foods)...
Then, to add to it, I came downstairs, &, looked through my pantry, &, realized how full of junk it was.
My DH does around 97% of the grocery shopping. I just mostly give him lists, &, *poof* ingredients magically appear. Anyhow, lets just say that he spends far too much time in the bakery/cookie/chip aisles. If you came for a visit, you would think that I was the perfect "Hostess", & expect to see a Keebler elf pop out from behind the couch w/a tray of cookies, &, most assuredly, you would think that "Little Debbie" was a beloved family member.
My kitchen is a mecca full of garbage...which I cannot eat, nor enjoy. GAH!!!...anyone want me to express mail them some oatmeal pies?

 

[chopper]

OK, those packaged goodies don't sound so good to me either, and I do like sweets. I just like the ones that come out of my oven, I don't invite "little debbie" to my house because then I wouldn't be a good "hostess."

 

[Midnight_Merlot]

LOL...Chopper, how 'bout a Swiss cake roll, &, a half-eaten bag of Taco flavored Doritos then?...also, if you provide your shipping address(I encourage the sooner the better as far as these chips are concerned), you will be eligible for my "special offer" of a BONUS FREE TWINKIE!! (yay you)!!

PS, this "bonus" offer is only good if you respond within the next 30 minutes - HAHAHA

 

[PrincessFiona60]

Funny, I said I was developing a sweet tooth...I just meant i was eating more dark chocolate than usual. Some of the things described, still don't sound good. I have a firm belief in things being too sweet.

 

[Midnight_Merlot]

Fiona, I had all 4 of my wisdom teeth yanked when I was 19 (go figure..just as soon as I "got wise"...I removed it) LOL....&, about 3 yrs. ago, I lost a molar. I just think that, somewhere in between the wisdoms, & that molar, well, my "sweet tooth" must have been wedged in between them. It's...well, dang it, its just gone!