Have you heard of the five monkeys experiment? It’s an apocryphal demonstration of how behaviours and beliefs can be adopted and perpetuated, long after the OG reasons for them fade. I’m pretty sure they could’ve just used humans and brussels sprouts as a metaphor instead.
Like most veg of medieval origin, brassicas, of which sprouts are a baby-cabbage-y-version, were grown for hardiness and weather-resistance. As a result, the flavour skewed bitter, and the texture, tough and oftentimes woody.
