Curiosities: Why is it that often foods with the least nutritional content taste the best to people?

It depends on how you define nutrition, says Franco Milani, an assistant professor of food science. The word “nutritious” may mean a food full of anti-oxidants and fiber, heavy on vitamins and protein, but light on calories.

But people who value anti-oxidants and fiber sometimes shun fine-tasting foods with extremely high nutritional content, Milani adds. “Take cream. It’s a nutritionally dense food with 35 percent fat and a bit of high quality protein.” As cream puff sales at the Wisconsin State Fair confirm, cream is fun to eat and rich in a dietary essential: energy. “So that food is very desirable, very nutritious” say Milani, “but some people say, ‘It’s horrible, it’s high in fat and saturated fat.’”

Milani says evolution favors foods that contribute to obesity. “Some of the tastiest nutrients, the equivalent of jet fuel, are not that common in nature. So the signal from our prehistoric brain says, ‘when you find it, go for it!’” The flavor of food, from your grandmother’s secret recipes to modern industrial manufacturing, was shaped by a long taste competition.

“The challenge today is to be conscientious and reprogram our senses toward our individual correct nutrition,” says Milani. “We are finding that the overall diet may matter most, a single food can’t deliver perfect nutrition. And there may not be one perfect diet. Factors such as genetics and lifestyle determine what is best for an individual.”