Abstract
Factors associated with sweetness preference are multi-faceted and incredibly complex. A scoping review was undertaken to identify determinants of sweetness preference in humans. Using an online search tool, ProQuest ™, a total of 99 publications were identified and subsequently grouped into the following categories of determinants: Age, dietary factors, reproductive hormonal factors, body weight status, heritable, weight loss, sound, personality, ethnicity and lifestyle, previous exposure, disease, and ‘other’ determinants. Methodologies amongst studies were heterogenous in nature (e.g., there was variability across studies in the sweetness concentrations tested, the number of different sweetness concentrations used to assess sweetness preference, and the methods utilized to measure sweetness preference), rendering interpretation of overall findings challenging; however, for certain determinants, the evidence appeared to support predictive capacity of greater sweetness preference, such as age during certain life-stages (i.e., young and old), being in a hungry versus satiated state, and heritable factors (e.g., similar sweetness preferences amongst family members). Recommendations for the design of future studies on sweetness preference determinants are provided herein, including an “investigator checklist” of criteria to consider.
Highlights
Human preference for sweet foods is universal, with hedonic responses changing over a person’s lifetime [1]
Categorization of Studies According to the Sweetness Preference Determinant Investigated
Children and adolescents tended to have a significantly greater sweetness preference compared to young adults
Summary
Human preference for sweet foods is universal, with hedonic responses changing over a person’s lifetime [1]. Sweet molecules in nature are sugars found primarily in plants (i.e., fructose, sucrose, and glucose), in addition to lactose found in many species’ milk, all of which provide a source of energy and sweetness. It has been hypothesized that sweetness preference may exist to identify energy-rich foods (i.e., containing readily available glucose) [2], which provides necessary metabolic fuel for the brain [3]. The signaling of sweet taste is a complex system involving a ligand (a sweet molecule) binding to a receptor, which activates downstream signaling to indicate either the perception of taste or the modulation of further signaling pathways.
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