Newswise — CHICAGO- A new study in the Journal of Food Science, published by the Institute of Food Technologists found that although taste has an important impact on dietary choice, perceived sweetness intensity alone did not have a significant influence on food behavior and dietary intake in young adults.
Students enrolled in a food and nutrition course at Deakin University, Australia and completed a food and diet questionnaire, two 24-hour food records, a food variety survey, and a perceived sweetness intensity measurement test which consisted of the subjects being given a sucrose solution to taste and they had to rate how sweet they felt the solution was. Out of the 130 students that participated, no correlation was observed between perceived sweetness and total caloric intake.
This was the first study of its kind to investigate the correlation between sweetness intensity and specific food behaviors and nutrient intake and no associations were found between the two. It must be acknowledged that the study was done on a small scale and therefore caution should be taken when generalizing current findings to the broader population.
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About IFT The Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) is a nonprofit scientific society. Our individual members are professionals engaged in food science, food technology, and related professions in industry, academia, and government. IFT's mission is to advance the science of food, and our long-range vision is to ensure a safe and abundant food supply, contributing to healthier people everywhere.
For more than 70 years, the IFT has been unlocking the potential of the food science community by creating a dynamic global forum where members from more than 100 countries can share, learn, and grow. We champion the use of sound science across the food value chain through the exchange of knowledge, by providing education, and by furthering the advancement of the profession. IFT has offices in Chicago, Illinois and Washington, D.C. For more information, please visit ift.org.
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