Sweetness Lab Analysis

In this lab, we asked the question "how does the structure of a carbohydrate affect its taste?" We found that while the sweetness of monosaccharides and disaccharides varies between different carbohydrates, both monosaccharides and disaccharides are ultimately sweeter than polysaccharides. This is shown by the degree of sweetness, rated on a scale from 0 to 200, of each carbohydrate. Starch and cellulose, the two polysaccharides, both received a 0, while the monosaccharides and disaccharides all received scores higher than 0. Because monosaccharides and disaccharides received higher scores than polysaccharides, this shows that monosaccharides and disaccharides were considered sweeter than polysaccharides.



Carbohydrate structure might affect how carbohydrates are used by cells in that carbohydrates with simpler structures might be easier to use. Since polysaccharides are long chains of monosaccharides, cells might need to break down polysaccharides in order to obtain the energy, which would take longer than using a monosaccharide, which doesn't need to be broken down. Because of this, monosaccharides and disaccharides might be used for an instant boost of energy, while polysaccharides might be used for a steady amount of energy.

All of our testers gave each sample the same rating. However, this might have been because we discussed how sweet we thought each carbohydrate was before settling on a degree of sweetness number. The ratings could be different because some people may eat more sweets than others and so they cannot accurately judge sweetness since everything they eat is sweet. They could also be different because some people didn't drink water between each carbohydrate. Finally, the ratings could be different because different people could perceive carbohydrates as sweeter or less sweet than they actually are.

According to Daniel Gritzer's article, Flavor Science: How We Taste Sweet, Sour, Salty, and More, our tongues detect tastes using protein receptors. When a sweet molecule touches a sweet protein receptor, it sends a signal to our brain that says there is a sweet molecule. Because of this, tasters could rank sweetness differently because their tongues are different. Since we are all different people, it is very likely that our tongues are different and that we taste things differently. It is also probable that our protein receptors are different, or that our brains don't register the signals given by the protein receptors in the same way.