Buds pass on flavour note

HOW many taste buds do we have on our tongue? Humans have about 10,000 taste buds, most of them on the tongue.

There are a few scattered at the back of the throat. The taste buds have little pores all around them.

When chemicals in food or drink are dissolved by saliva, they go into the pores, and surround the taste buds.

The chemicals stimulate hairs coming from the receptor cells that make up the taste buds. And from there signals are sent to the brain, and we taste!