Conditioned Taste Aversions

In discussing learning and classical conditioning in chapter six of the psychology textbook, conditioned taste aversions are one concept outlined. A conditioned taste aversion can be described as a negative view or dislike of a certain food due to previous classical conditioning in our lives. If something unfortunate occurs in our daily lives such as vomiting, diarrhea, or an upset stomach after eating a certain food, we may develop one of these conditioned taste aversions. We associate the food we ate prior to the unfortunate event with the unfortunate event that occurred and become unable to eat that food anymore from then on. This form of classical conditioning only needs one occurrence to be instilled into our minds and does not always occur immediately after we experience our unfortunate event. The idea of conditioned taste aversions is necessary in the world of psychology to demonstrate the different ways classical conditioning can affect our daily lives in both positive and negative ways. We may also be able to determine a reason for no longer enjoying the taste of a certain food we previously hadn't thought about. I have definitely experienced a conditioned taste aversion in my life. One morning a few years ago, I was pouring myself a bowl of Honey Nut Cheerios and milk for breakfast. Little did I know, the milk was rotten, and I proceeded to take a bite of my cereal. I have never been able to eat Honey Nut Cheerios after that horrible discovery. In conducting further research on conditioned taste aversions, I would be interested in learning more about where in the brain we develop these aversions and how our taste buds are affected in the long run and if it is possible to outgrow the taste aversions.