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Taste preferences and body weight changes in an obesity-prone population^1,2,3

¹ From the Clinical Diabetes and Nutrition Section, Phoenix Epidemiology and Clinical Research Branch, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Phoenix, AZ (ADS, ADP, REP, and PAT), and the Nutritional Sciences Program, University of Washington, Seattle (AD)

Background: Taste preferences for highly palatable foods rich in sugar and fat may underlie the current epidemic of obesity.

Objective: This study aimed to determine whether the hedonic response to sweet and creamy solutions differs between whites and Pima Indians and whether a preference for these tastes predicts weight gain.

Design: One hundred twenty-three Pima Indian and 64 white volunteers taste tested solutions of nonfat milk (0.1% fat), whole milk (3.5% fat), half and half (11.3% fat), and cream (37.5% fat) containing 0%, 5%, 10%, or 20% sugar by weight. Solutions were rated for perceived sweetness, creaminess, and pleasantness (hedonic response) on a 100-mm visual analogue scale. Follow-up body weight was measured in 75 Pima Indians 5.5 ± 3.0 y ( ± SD) after baseline taste testing.

Results: The Pima Indians had a significantly (P = 0.006) lower hedonic response than did the whites (repeated-measures analysis of variance). Neither body size (P = 0.56) nor adiposity (P = 0.86) was a significant predictor of the hedonic response. There was a positive correlation (r = 0.28, P = 0.01) between the maximal hedonic response at baseline and subsequent weight gain in the Pima Indians.

Conclusion: Although the Pima Indians liked sweet and creamy solutions less than the whites did, a heightened hedonic response for these solutions among the Pima Indians was associated with weight gain.

Key Words: Taste perceptions • hedonic responses • obesity • Pima Indians • palatability and weight gain • food intake

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