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Will the miracle berry trend change our tastes forever?

The miracle berry, which can sweeten sour foods and drinks to transform flavour, is going viral on TikTok with people trialling its effects.

The berry, scientifically known as Synsepalum dulcificum, is a fruit native to West Africa. It alters the way our taste buds work by turning acidity into sweet flavours for up to an hour.

Data from Heliyon via the National Library of Medicine has suggested that the berries could also have additional antidiabetic, cholesterol-lowering properties as well as acting as, antioxidants and anticonvulsants.

The possibilities of the miracle berry trend are endless with the current trend on TikTok for “flavour-tripping” parties becoming more prevalent. Videos featuring people eating the berries and then consuming sour foods while marvelling at how lemon juice tastes sweet and lemon slices taste like they’ve been dipped in sugar or how vinegar can taste like apple juice are being reported. Some people are admitting that variants of the berries which have also been made into tablet form named the Mberry are, essentially,“a sweet tooth’s dream come true” with the Mberry tablets selling well while people trial adapted flavours.

But the use of the berries is set to now going further than being a party trick and is, according to dietitian Lauren Manaker, could have some practical uses too.

According to the Heliyon data, the secret to the miracle berry’s magic lies in a protein called miraculin. This means that when someone chews the berry, miraculin binds to the sweet receptors on their tongue.

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Typically, sweet receptors are only triggered by sweet things like sugar, but miraculin reportedly changes the receptor’s sensitivity, making it activate in response to acids instead of sugar.

Looking further into the trend, Manaker explained that this means that “miraculin binds to your taste buds and temporarily tricks them into making sour or acidic foods — including citrus fruits, vinegar, sour candies and even tomatoes — taste sweet”.

Medical reports have additionally outlined that the miracle berry may also be helpful for patients undergoing chemotherapy that are experiencing taste alteration while other conditions that alter taste perception, such as a loss of taste or smell, known as anosmia that many experienced amid the pandemic may find the berries useful too.

Drinks producers should also take note that the berries can also act as a low-calorie sweetener alternative and the ingredient may even help people with diabetes or those managing blood sugar levels enjoy sweetness in their diets more safely.

A container of 30 fruit halves of the miracle berries currently retails at around US$28.

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