Ottawa pizzeria places among top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world at international competition
An Ottawa pizzeria is being recognized as one of the top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world.
Loss of taste and smell is a commonly reported symptom of COVID-19, but a new study suggests that how people react to bitter flavours generally may play a role in whether or not they contract the virus and how sick they may become from it.
A recent study published in the medical journal JAMA Network Open analyzed more than 1,900 patients and found that “supertasters” – people who are overly sensitive to bitter flavours – were less likely to test positive for COVID-19.
Those who find bitter foods tolerable or don’t register bitter tastes were significantly more likely to test positive for the disease, to be hospitalized, and to be symptomatic for a longer duration than their supertaster counterparts.
Bitter taste receptors (T2Rs), including a specific one called T2R38, are found in the taste buds of your tongue and determine how you perceive bitter foods like broccoli, cilantro, or kale, for example.
The study notes that when T2R38 in particular is stimulated it produces nitric oxide, helping to kill or prevent pathogens from replicating in the respiratory tract – the point of entry for viruses like COVID-19.
Building on previous research, the study looked at a sample of 1,935 people from July 1, 2020 to September 30, 2020.
Twenty-six per cent of participants were considered supertasters, 47 per cent were average tasters, and 26 per cent were non-tasters.
Supertasters – people with the most taste buds on their tongue – often find bitter foods like broccoli, cilantro, kale, or green tea overwhelming, whereas non-tasters can’t detect bitter flavours at all.
So-called average tasters have fewer taste buds and usually enjoy more bitter, savoury foods.
By the end of the study, 266 participants tested positive for COVID-19. Only 15 of those were categorized as supertasters prior to infection.
Thirty-nine per cent of those who tested positive for COVID-19 (104 participants) were categorized as average tasters prior to infection, and 55 per cent (147 participants) were categorized as non-tasters.
Of those who contracted the disease, 55 required hospitalization, 86 per cent of which were classified as non-tasters. No supertasters became sick enough to require hospitalization.
Although the study is limited, researchers suggest that a simple bitterness test may help doctors anticipate the clinical course of patients who test positive for COVID-19.
“This could draw a path for future research regarding other possible roles of the T2Rs in innate immunity, especially in the form of potential therapeutics, prioritization of vaccinations, and possible roles against other upper respiratory tract pathogens (i.e., influenza),” reads the study.
An Ottawa pizzeria is being recognized as one of the top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world.
Dozens of Ontarians are expressing frustration in the province’s health-care system after their family doctors either dropped them as patients or threatened to after they sought urgent care elsewhere.
It’s been a year since Nathan Wise went missing and his family is no closer to finding out what happened to him.
Amazon's paid subscription service provides free delivery for online shopping across Canada except for remote locations, the company said in an email. While customers in Iqaluit qualify for the offer, all other communities in Nunavut are excluded.
This Mother's Day Weekend, take a look at some of the most emotional movies inspired by moms.
Police are searching for a suspect in a homicide investigation after a man was slashed in downtown Toronto on Sunday.
Health Canada announced various product recalls this week, including electric adapters, armchairs, cannabis edibles and vehicle components.
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin began a Cabinet shakeup on Sunday, proposing the replacement of Sergei Shoigu as defence minister as he begins his fifth term in office.
There were some scary moments for several people on a northern Ontario highway caught on video Thursday after a chain reaction following a truck fire.
A family of fifth generation farmers from Ituna, Sask. are trying to find answers after discovering several strange objects lying on their land.
A Listowel, Ont. man, drafted by the Hamilton Tigercats last week, is also getting looks from the NFL, despite only playing 27 games of football in his life.
The threat of zebra mussels has prompted the federal government to temporarily ban watercraft from a Manitoba lake popular with tourists.
A small Ajax dessert shop that recently received a glowing review from celebrity food critic Keith Lee is being forced to move after a zoning complaint was made following the social media influencer’s visit last month.
The Canada Science and Technology Museum is inviting visitors to explore their poop. A new exhibition opens at the Ottawa museum on Friday called, 'Oh Crap! Rethinking human waste.'
The Regina Police Service says it is the first in Saskatchewan and possibly Canada to implement new technology in its detention facility that will offer real-time monitoring of detainees’ vital health metrics.
Just as she had feared, a restaurant owner from eastern Quebec who visited Montreal had her SUV stolen, but says it was all thanks to the kindness of strangers on the internet — not the police — that she got it back.
The stakes have been set for a bet between Vancouver and Edmonton's mayors on who will win Round 2 of the Stanley Cup playoffs.
A grieving mother is hosting a helmet drive in the hopes of protecting children on Manitoba First Nations from a similar tragedy that killed her daughter.