The proof is in the pudding: children prefer lower fat but higher sugar than do mothers

Mennella, Julie A.; Finkbeiner, Susana; Reed, Danielle R.

doi:10.1038/ijo.2012.51

Cited by 76 publications

(83 citation statements)

References 38 publications

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“…Genetic studies suggest that people vary in their liking for sweetness [8,55,56]. How this variation arises is poorly understood, but is likely to be due, at least in part, to allelic variation in the sweet receptor [16,57]. The liking or dislike for high-intensity sweeteners (rather than sugars) may be due to their off-tastes; in fact, alleles in bitter receptors partially account for person-to-person differences in how these non-sugar sweeteners are perceived [11,15,58].…”

Section: Genetic Differences In Sweet Taste Detectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Heritable differences in chemosensory ability among humans

Newcomb

Xia

Reed

2012

Flavour

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The combined senses of taste, smell and the common chemical sense merge to form what we call 'flavor.' People show marked differences in their ability to detect many flavors, and in this paper, we review the role of genetics underlying these differences in perception. Most of the genes identified to date encode receptors responsible for detecting tastes or odorants. We list these genes and describe their characteristics, beginning with the best-studied case, that of differences in phenylthiocarbamide (PTC) detection, encoded by variants of the bitter taste receptor gene TAS2R38. We then outline examples of genes involved in differences in sweet and umami taste, and discuss what is known about other taste qualities, including sour and salty, fat (termed pinguis), calcium, and the 'burn' of peppers. Although the repertoire of receptors involved in taste perception is relatively small, with 25 bitter and only a few sweet and umami receptors, the number of odorant receptors is much larger, with about 400 functional receptors and another 600 potential odorant receptors predicted to be non-functional. Despite this, to date, there are only a few cases of odorant receptor variants that encode differences in the perception of odors: receptors for androstenone (musky), isovaleric acid (cheesy), cis-3-hexen-1-ol (grassy), and the urinary metabolites of asparagus. A genome-wide study also implicates genes other than olfactory receptors for some individual differences in perception. Although there are only a small number of examples reported to date, there may be many more genetic variants in odor and taste genes yet to be discovered.Keywords: Flavor, Genetics, Evolution, Taste, Odor, Receptor, Polymorphism Review Why we differ in taste perceptionHumans use several kinds of information to decide what to eat, and the combination of experience and sensory evaluation helps us to choose whether to consume a particular food. If the sight, smell, and taste of the food are acceptable, and we see others enjoying it, we finish chewing and swallow it. Several senses combine to create the idea of food flavor in the brain. For example, a raw chili pepper has a crisp texture, an odor, a bitter and sour taste, and a chemesthetic 'burn.' Each of these sensory modalities is associated with a particular group of receptors: at least three subtypes of somatosensory receptors (touch, pain, and temperature), human odor receptors, which respond either singly or in combination; [1,2], at least five types of taste receptors (bitter, sour, sweet, salty, and umami (the savory experience associated with monosodium glutamate [3])), and several families of other receptors tuned to the irritating chemicals in foods, especially of herbs and spices (for example, eugenol found in cloves [4] or allicin found in garlic [5]). The information from all these receptors are transmitted to the brain, where it is processed and integrated [6]. Experience is a potent modifier of chemosensory perception, and persistent exposure to an odorant is enough to change...

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Section: Genetic Differences In Sweet Taste Detectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Heritable differences in chemosensory ability among humans

Newcomb

Xia

Reed

2012

Flavour

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“…Accumulating research suggests that preferences for basic tastes are a major determinant of children's food choices and acceptance patterns [8][9][10][11] . Over the past few decades, our understanding of children's perception and preference for basic tastes has grown substantially (for a review see [7] ).…”

Section: Age-related Changes In Response To Sweet and Bitter Tastementioning

confidence: 99%

Flavor Perception and Preference Development in Human Infants

Forestell¹

2017

Ann Nutr Metab

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As most parents and caregivers are aware, feeding children a nutritionally balanced diet can be challenging. Children are born with a biological predisposition to prefer sweet and to avoid bitter foods such as green leafy vegetables. It has been hypothesized that this predisposition evolved to attract children to energy-dense foods while discouraging the consumption of toxins. Although this may have enhanced survival in environments historically characterized by food scarcity, it is clearly maladaptive in many of today's food environments where children are surrounded by an abundance of sweet-tasting, unhealthful foods and beverages that place them at risk for excessive weight gain. Because overweight or obese children tend to become overweight or obese adults who are at risk for a range of cardiovascular diseases, it is of primary importance to develop effective evidence-based strategies to promote the development of healthy eating styles. Fortunately, accumulating evidence suggests that, starting before birth and continuing throughout development, there are repeated and varied opportunities for children to learn to enjoy the flavors of healthful foods. Because flavors are transmitted from the maternal diet to amniotic fluid and breast milk, mothers who consume a variety of healthful foods throughout pregnancy and lactation provide their infants with an opportunity to learn to like these flavors. This in turn eases the transition to healthful foods at weaning. In contrast, infants fed formula learn to prefer its invariant flavor profile, which differs from breast milk, and may initially be less accepting of flavors not found in formula. This process can continue throughout weaning and into childhood if infants are repeatedly exposed to a variety of healthful foods, even if they initially dislike them. These early-life sensory experiences establish food preferences and dietary patterns that set the stage for lifelong dietary habits.

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“…Twin studies have shown that the genetic contribution to the discrimination threshold of a sweet solution was approximately 33% and the contribution to the consumption frequency of sweet foods was 53% [3,4,5]. To date, only a few studies have examined the effect of genetic variation in sweet taste receptor genes on either sweet taste perception or sugar consumption in humans and none have identified variants that affect both taste and intake [6,7,8,9]. …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Variation in the <b><i>TAS1R2</i></b> Gene, Sweet Taste Perception and Intake of Sugars

Dias

Eny²,

Cockburn³

et al. 2015

Lifestyle Genomics

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Background/Aims: To determine whether variation in the TAS1R2 gene affects sucrose taste perception and sugar intake. Methods: Participants were men (n = 238) and women (n = 458) aged 20-29 years. A subset (n = 95) with body mass index (BMI) data available completed a sensory analysis study. A food frequency questionnaire assessed dietary intake, and eight polymorphisms were genotyped (rs12033832, rs12137730, rs35874116, rs3935570, rs4920564, rs4920566, rs7513755 and rs9701796). Sucrose taste thresholds were determined by staircase procedure (solutions: 9 × 10^-6 to 0.5 mol/l). Suprathreshold sensitivity to 0.01-1.0 mol/l sucrose solutions was assessed using general Labeled Magnitude Scales. Results: A significant genotype-BMI interaction was observed for rs12033832 (G>A) for suprathreshold sensitivity (p = 0.01) and sugar intake (p = 0.003). Among participants with a BMI ≥25, G allele carriers had lower sensitivity ratings (mean incremental area under the taste sensitivity curve ± SE; GG/GA 54.4 ± 4.1 vs. AA 178.5 ± 66.6; p = 0.006), higher thresholds (GG/GA 9.3 ± 1.1 vs. AA 4.4 ± 4.3 mmol/l; p = 0.004) and consumed more sugars (GG/GA 130 ± 4 vs. AA 94 ± 13 g/day; p = 0.009). G allele carriers with a BMI <25 had lower thresholds (GG/GA 8.6 ± 0.5 vs. AA 16.7 ± 5.7 mmol/l; p = 0.02) and consumed less sugars (GG/GA 122 ± 2 vs. AA 145 ± 8 g/day; p = 0.004). Conclusion: The rs12033832 single nucleotide polymorphism in TAS1R2 is associated with sucrose taste and sugar intake, but the effect differs depending on BMI.

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The proof is in the pudding: children prefer lower fat but higher sugar than do mothers

Cited by 76 publications

References 38 publications

Heritable differences in chemosensory ability among humans

Heritable differences in chemosensory ability among humans

Flavor Perception and Preference Development in Human Infants

Variation in the <b><i>TAS1R2</i></b> Gene, Sweet Taste Perception and Intake of Sugars

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