Why does toothpaste make whatever you eat after brushing taste bad?

Question

What’s the property of toothpaste that makes some foods (orange juice is the classic example, I guess) taste SO bad if you eat right after brushing?

In: 60

Answer 1

Regardless of the numbing agent (sodium laureate) the sweet flavour of toothpaste is strong and basically overwhelms your taste receptors for sweetness. The receptors go shut down for a while, so you won’t be able to register anything sweet until they recover, but you will still taste all the other aspects of whatever you eat/drink, and whatever it is will be way out of balance without the sweetness.

This effect can be super beneficial when pairing wine with food though!