Monell Chemical Senses Center, Philadelphia, PA.
Department of Nutrition & Exercise Sciences, St. Catherine University, St. Paul, MN.
J Nutr. 2019 May 1;149(5):870-876. doi: 10.1093/jn/nxz014.
Although salt taste preference is malleable in adults, no research to date has focused on children, whose dietary sodium intake exceeds recommended intake and whose salt taste preferences are elevated.
This proof-of-principle trial determined whether 8-wk exposure to low-sodium cereal (LSC) increased children's acceptance of its taste and changed their salty and sweet taste preferences.
Children (n = 39; ages 6-14 y; 67% female) were randomly assigned to ingest LSC or regular-sodium cereal (RSC) 4 times/wk for 8 wk. The cereals, similar in sugar (3 g/cup compared with 2 g/cup) and energy content (100 kcal/cup) yet different in sodium content (200 mg sodium/cup compared with 64 mg sodium/cup), were chosen based on taste evaluation by a panel of children. Mothers completed daily logs on children's cereal intake. At baseline and after the exposure period, taste tests determined which cereal children preferred and measured children's most preferred amount of salt (primary outcomes), and most preferred amount of sucrose and salt taste detection thresholds (secondary outcomes). Repeated measures ANOVAs were conducted on primary and secondary outcomes, and generalized estimating equations were conducted on amount of cereal ingested at home over time.
Both treatment groups accepted and ate the assigned cereal throughout the 8-wk exposure. There were no group × time interactions in salt detection thresholds (P = 0.32) or amount of salt (P = 0.30) and sucrose (P = 0.77) most preferred, which were positively correlated (P = 0.001). At baseline and after the exposure, the majority in both groups preferred the taste of the RSC relative to LSC (P > 0.40).
Children showed no change in salt preference but readily ate the LSC for 8 consecutive weeks. Findings highlight the potential for reducing children's dietary salt intake by incorporating low-sodium foods in the home environment without more preferred higher-salt versions of these foods. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT02909764.
尽管成年人的盐味偏好是可以改变的，但迄今为止，还没有针对儿童的研究，因为儿童的膳食钠摄入量已经超过了推荐摄入量，而且他们的盐味偏好也有所提高。
本初步试验旨在确定 8 周的低钠麦片（LSC）暴露是否会增加儿童对其味道的接受程度，并改变他们对咸和甜的味道偏好。
将 39 名年龄在 6-14 岁的儿童（67%为女性）随机分为 4 组，每周 4 次摄入 LSC 或普通钠麦片（RSC）8 周。选择这些麦片是基于一组儿童对其口味的评估，这两种麦片的糖含量（每杯 3 克，与每杯 2 克相比）和能量含量（每杯 100 千卡，与每杯 64 毫克相比）相似，但钠含量不同（每杯 200 毫克，与每杯 64 毫克相比）。母亲们每天记录孩子们的麦片摄入量。在基线和暴露期结束时，通过味觉测试确定孩子们更喜欢哪种麦片，并测量他们最喜欢的盐量（主要结果）以及最喜爱的蔗糖和盐味检测阈值（次要结果）。对主要和次要结果进行重复测量方差分析，对随时间在家中摄入的麦片量进行广义估计方程分析。
两组儿童在整个 8 周的暴露期内都接受并食用了分配的麦片。盐味检测阈值（P=0.32）或盐（P=0.30）和蔗糖（P=0.77）的最喜爱量均无组间时间交互作用，且两者呈正相关（P=0.001）。在基线和暴露期结束时，两组中大多数人都更喜欢 RSC 的味道，而不是 LSC（P>0.40）。
儿童的盐味偏好没有改变，但在连续 8 周内很乐意食用 LSC。这些发现强调了通过在家中环境中添加低钠食品来减少儿童膳食盐摄入量的潜力，而无需更受欢迎的这些食品的高盐版本。本试验在 clinicaltrials.gov 上注册，编号为 NCT02909764。
