Relationship between Sucrose Taste Detection Thresholds and Preferences in Children, Adolescents, and Adults

Abstract

To address gaps in knowledge, our objectives were to (1) to determine whether there are age-related changes in sweet taste detection thresholds, as has been observed for sweet taste preferences, and (2) determine whether detection thresholds and taste preferences were significantly related to each other from childhood to adulthood. We combined data from studies that used the same validated psychophysical techniques to measure sucrose taste detection threshold and the most preferred sucrose concentration in children (n = 108), adolescents (n = 172), and adults (n = 205). There were significant effects of age group on both sucrose detection thresholds (p < 0.001) and most preferred sucrose concentration (p < 0.001). While children had higher sucrose detection thresholds than adolescents, who in turn tended to have higher detection thresholds than adults, both children and adolescent most preferred sucrose concentrations were higher than that of adults (all p < 0.05). Among each age group, and when combined, the lowest sucrose concentration detected was not significantly correlated with the most preferred sucrose concentration (all p > 0.18). These data provide further evidence that age-related changes in sucrose taste preferences that occur during adolescence cannot be explained by changes in taste sensitivity and that these two dimensions of sweet taste undergo distinct developmental trajectories from childhood to adulthood.

Keywords: detection threshold; development; preferences; psychophysics; sweet taste.

Figure 1

(a) Sucrose taste detection thresholds: concentration of sucrose (mM) at which children, adolescents, and adults detected a taste different from water. There was a significant effect of age group (p < 0.001). Different subscripts represent groups that are significantly different from each other at p < 0.05. Values are presented as GeoMeans ± GeoSE (see Section 2.4 for explanation). (b) To illustrate the age-related differences in sucrose detection thresholds, we converted millimolar concentrations of each age group to the number of 8-ounce (230 mL) glasses of water required to dilute one 4 g sugar cube, in all cases we rounded up.

Figure 2

(a) Sucrose concentration (mM) most preferred among children, adolescents, and adults. There was a significant effect of age group (p < 0.001). Different subscripts represent groups that are significantly different from each other at p < 0.05. Values are means ± SEM (see Section 2.4 for explanation). (b) To illustrate the age-related differences in most preferred sucrose concentration, we converted millimolar concentrations of each age group to number of 4 g sugar cubes required per one 8-ounce (230 mL) glass of water, in all cases we rounded up.