Lim Ler Sheang, Tang Xian Hui, Yang Wai Yew, Ong Shu Hwa, Naumovski Nenad, Jani Rati
Division of Nutrition and Dietetics, School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health, International Medical University, Kuala Lumpur 57000, Malaysia.
Discipline of Nutrition and Dietetics, School of Rehabilitation and Exercise Sciences, Faculty of Health, University of Canberra, Canberra, ACT 2617, Australia.
Pediatr Rep. 2021 May 18;13(2):245-256. doi: 10.3390/pediatric13020034.
The taste and food preferences in children can affect their food intake and body weight. Bitter and sweet taste sensitivities were identified as primary taste contributors to children's preference for consuming various foods. This pilot study aimed to determine the taste sensitivity and preference for bitter and sweet tastes in a sample of Malaysian children. A case-control study was conducted among 15 pairs of Malay children aged 7 to 12 years. Seven solutions at different concentrations of 6-n-propylthiouracil and sucrose were prepared for testing bitterness and sweet sensitivity, respectively. The intensity of both bitter and sweet sensitivity was measured using a 100 mm Labelled Magnitude Scale (LMS), while the taste preference was rated using a 5-point Likert scale. The participants were better at identifying bitter than sweet taste (median score 6/7 vs. 4/7). No significant differences were detected for both tastes between normal-weight and overweight groups (bitter: 350 vs. 413, = 0.273; sweet: 154 vs. 263, = 0.068), as well as in Likert readings (bitter 9 vs. 8: = 0.490; sweet 22 vs. 22: = 0.677). In this sample of Malay children, the participants were more sensitive to bitterness than sweetness, yet presented similar taste sensitivity and preference irrespective of their weight status. Future studies using whole food samples are warranted to better characterize potential taste sensitivity and preference in children.
儿童的味觉和食物偏好会影响他们的食物摄入量和体重。苦味和甜味敏感度被认为是影响儿童对各种食物偏好的主要味觉因素。这项初步研究旨在确定马来西亚儿童样本对苦味和甜味的味觉敏感度及偏好。对15对7至12岁的马来儿童进行了一项病例对照研究。分别制备了7种不同浓度的6-正丙基硫氧嘧啶和蔗糖溶液，用于测试苦味和甜味敏感度。苦味和甜味敏感度的强度使用100毫米标记量级量表（LMS）进行测量，而味觉偏好则使用5点李克特量表进行评分。参与者对苦味的识别能力优于甜味（中位数得分6/7对4/7）。在正常体重组和超重组之间，两种味觉均未检测到显著差异（苦味：350对413，P = 0.273；甜味：154对263，P = 0.068），在李克特读数中也未检测到显著差异（苦味9对8：P = 0.490；甜味22对22：P = 0.677）。在这个马来儿童样本中，参与者对苦味比甜味更敏感，但无论体重状况如何，他们表现出相似的味觉敏感度和偏好。未来有必要使用全食物样本进行研究，以更好地描述儿童潜在的味觉敏感度和偏好特征。
