State Key Laboratory of Food Science and Resources, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China; Science Center for Future Foods, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China; School of Food Science and Technology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China; International Joint Laboratory for Food Safety, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China.
Crossmodal Research Laboratory, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
Food Res Int. 2024 Aug;189:114516. doi: 10.1016/j.foodres.2024.114516. Epub 2024 May 10.
Umami substances have the potential to enhance the perception of saltiness and thus reduce sodium intake. Two sensory evaluation experiments were conducted, involving participants tasting salt solutions, and solutions with added umami substances at equal sodium concentrations. Umami substances included sodium glutamate (MSG), disodium inosinate (IMP), and the combination of them which has a synergistic effect and is a closer match to commonly-consumed foods. In Experiment 1, using the two-alternative forced-choice (2-AFC) method by 330 consumers, paired comparisons were conducted at three different sodium concentrations. The combination of MSG and IMP enhanced the perception of saltiness (p < .001 in the difference test), whereas presenting either umami substance in isolation failed to do so (p > .05 in the similarity test). Significant order effects occurred in paired comparisons. In Experiment 2, a two-sip time-intensity (TI) analysis with trained panellists verified these results and found that tasting MSG and IMP either simultaneously or successively enhanced saltiness perception at equal sodium concentrations. These findings indicate that the synergistic effect of umami substances may be the cause of saltiness enhancement, and represents a potential strategy for sodium reduction while satisfying the consumer demand for saltiness perception. Considering the application in food processing and in food pairing, umami substances can potentially be used to help to reduce salt intake in food consumption.
鲜味物质具有增强咸味感知的潜力，从而减少钠的摄入量。进行了两项感官评估实验，涉及参与者品尝盐溶液和添加鲜味物质的等钠浓度溶液。鲜味物质包括谷氨酸钠（MSG）、肌苷酸钠（IMP）以及它们的组合，具有协同作用，更接近人们常吃的食物。在实验 1 中，通过 330 名消费者的二选一强制选择（2-AFC）方法，在三个不同的钠浓度下进行了配对比较。MSG 和 IMP 的组合增强了咸味感知（差异测试中 p<0.001），而单独呈现任何一种鲜味物质都没有这种效果（相似性测试中 p>0.05）。配对比较中存在显著的顺序效应。在实验 2 中，经过训练的品尝小组成员进行了两次品尝时间强度（TI）分析，验证了这些结果，并发现 MSG 和 IMP 同时或相继品尝，在等钠浓度下增强了咸味感知。这些发现表明，鲜味物质的协同作用可能是增强咸味的原因，代表了一种在满足消费者对咸味感知需求的同时减少钠摄入量的潜在策略。考虑到在食品加工和食品搭配中的应用，鲜味物质有可能用于帮助减少食品消费中的盐摄入量。
