Explanations for food preferences: the evolutionary explanation, including reference to neophobia and taste aversion
Evolution shaped what humans enjoy eating. We evolved to prefer safe, energy-rich foods and to avoid unfamiliar or poisonous ones through neophobia and taste aversion.
Real World
After a bad bout of food poisoning from chicken, many people develop a lasting aversion to that specific food — a taste aversion that can persist for years even when they know the chicken was not the actual cause.
Exam Focus
Name neophobia and taste aversion separately and explain the distinct survival function each served for ancestral humans.
Evaluation Scaffold
A four-step framework for high-quality evaluation. Use this for 'assess', 'evaluate', and 'to what extent' questions.
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