Geschatte leestijd: 2 minutenReduced Taste Sensitivity May Lead to Sweeter Eating Habits, While Obesity Could Lead to Decreased Taste Sensitivity. Researchers May Have Discovered a Vicious Cycle of Obesity.
Sweet Tooth or Reduced Taste Sensitivity?
Researchers from Cornell University may have discovered a link suggesting the existence of a vicious cycle of obesity. Their findings were published in the scientific journal Appetite [1].
The researchers found that as people’s ability to taste sweetness decreases, the desire for more sugar in food arises. To confirm the suspicion of such a connection between taste sensitivity and sugar craving, the researchers temporarily reduced the degree to which sugar was tasted. They did this by giving the research participants a tea with three different concentrations of a natural herb called Gymnema Sylvestre. This herb is known to temporarily suppress the ability to taste sugar by blocking sweetness receptors.
Next, the participants were asked to drink a relatively tasteless beverage and add sugar to it according to their taste preference. Blocking the sweet receptors resulted in participants on average increasing the percentage of sugar in their drink from 8 to 12 percent.
Others have suggested that the overweight may have a reduction in their perceived intensity of taste. So, if an overweight or obese person has a diminished sense of taste, our research shows that they may begin to seek out more intense stimuli to attain a satisfactory level of reward. This can influence their eating habits to compensate for a lower taste response.
The research shows that people with a taste sensitivity reduced by 20% add an extra teaspoon of sugar to their drink (a drink of 470ml).
According to the researchers, abnormalities in taste sensitivity should therefore be considered a risk factor for possible obesity.
References
- Corinna A. Noel, Meaghan Sugrue, Robin Dando. Participants with pharmacologically impaired taste function seek out more intense, higher calorie stimuli. Appetite, 2017; 117: 74 DOI: 10.1016/j.appet.2017.06.006
