Potential of Bitter Medicinal Plants: A Review of Flavor Physiology

The function of the sense of taste is usually confined to the ability to perceive the flavor of food to assess and use the nutrients necessary for healthy survival and to discard those that may be harmful, toxic, or unpleasant. It is almost unanimously agreed that the perception of bitter taste prevents the consumption of toxins from plants, decaying foods, and drugs. Forty years ago, while practicing medicine in a rural area of the Colombian Amazon, I had an unexpected encounter with the Inga Indians. I faced the challenge of accepting that their traditional medicine was effective and that the medicinal plants they used had a real therapeutic effect. Wanting to follow a process of learning about medicinal plants on their terms, I found that, for them, the taste of plants is a primary and fundamental key to understanding their functioning. One of the most exciting results was discovering the therapeutic value of bitter plants. The present review aims to understand whether there is any scientific support for this hypothesis from the traditional world. Can the taste of plants explain their possible therapeutic benefit? In the last 20 years, we have made novel advances in the knowledge of the physiology of taste. Our purpose will be to explore these scientific advances to determine if the bitter taste of medicinal plants benefits human health.