Suppose sweet candy had no taste,
That would be a total waste!
Sweet milk chocolate tastes like water?
Won’t be found upon my order!
Pizza pies that taste like air?
That’s not right, that’s not fair!
That won’t happen,
That I know,
‘Cause tongue’s the one to run the show…
Tongue knows sour, bitter, sweet,
Tongue’s taste buds, can’t be beat…
My tongue, the organ, gives me taste,
Without it foods would be a waste!
Watch Mr. R.’s Sense of Taste Song
Watch Mr. R.’s 5 Senses Song
Our tongues are the organs which give us our sense of taste. The top side of our tongues are covered in tiny taste buds that can detect salty, sour, bitter, sweet, and umami.
Contrary to popular belief all taste buds can sense all the different tastes. There are no areas of the tongue (tongue mapping) which are specific to sour, or salty, or sweet. The tongue mapping theory was based on a long debunked study from 1901.
Our tongue helps when we are chewing and swallowing our food, and lets us create certain sounds when we are speaking (For a fun experiment, try eating or speaking without moving your tongue!)