Why Is Airplane Food So Bad?

Whether it's for vacation or for work, traveling can be an exciting time.

However, if you're stuck on a long flight, you may have to suffer with the dreaded airline food.

Why does airplane food always seem to taste so bad?

In a recent study by Cornell University, 48 people were handed a variety of solutions that were filled with five basic tastes; bitter, sweet, sour, salty, and savory.

First the participants tasted the solutions blindfolded, and then again but with headphones that had roughly 85 different noises that mimicked sounds of a plane (jet engine, etc.).

Researchers found that when an environment has loud noise, the taste of your food can be compromised. In the study, there wasn't that much of a change in how the salty, bitter, and sour solution tasted, but researchers found there was a difference in how the sweet solution tasted.

Listen in as Robin Dando, PhD, shares why food always tastes different on an airplane and the other factors that can influence how you perceive taste.