Question

How do evolutionary psychologists explain why pregnant women from cultures across the world tend to avoid bitter, strongly flavored foods?

a. Most cultures educate women about the dangers of certain foods on a developing fetus
b. Women and men have genetic differences in taste preferences
c. Bitter tastes can be an indication of foods toxic toward a developing baby, so this preference developed through natural selection
d. Pregnant women tend to associate with one another and they acquire similar food preferences through social conformity
e. Historical preferences toward or against certain tastes tend to change as cultures change

Answer 1

c. Bitter tastes can be an indication of foods toxic toward a developing baby, so this preference developed through natural selection.

Evolutionary psychologists theorize that pregnant women's avoidance of bitter and strongly flavored foods is a protective adaptation through natural selection, as bitterness can indicate the presence of toxins. Research on taste aversion and the placement of bitter receptors on the tongue support this hypothesis. This aversion is seen as an evolutionary strategy to safeguard the mother and the developing fetus.

Step-by-step explanation:

Evolutionary psychologists explain the tendency of pregnant women to avoid bitter and strongly flavored foods as an adaptive measure to protect the developing fetus. The aversive response to bitter tastes is hypothesized to have originated because many toxins manifest as bitter flavors. This natural aversion to bitter tastes, especially during pregnancy, could be an evolutionary strategy encoded within certain genes to prevent harm to both the mother and developing baby. This preference evolved through natural selection, shaping taste preferences as a means of species survival.

Through research, such as the studies by Garcia & Koelling, it has been discovered that certain conditioning, such as taste aversion, is more readily learned when it is associated with an organism's health and welfare. Plus, the presence of bitter receptors at the back of the tongue, where they can trigger a gag reflex to expel potentially poisonous substances, further supports this evolutionary psychology view. Pregnant women might exhibit this food aversion as a biological protective mechanism rather than due to culture or social conformity.

Moreover, newborns have shown a preference for the tastes of foods their mother ate during pregnancy, suggesting an early adaptation to the maternal diet that could also be evolutionary in nature. Preferences towards certain tastes, like avoiding bitterness during pregnancy, are likely to be a mix of innate and culturally-acquired behaviors. However, the evolutionary perspective emphasizes the survival advantage that comes with avoiding potentially harmful substances.