Desire for Sweet Taste Unchanged After Eating: Evidence of a Dessert Mentality?

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Added sugars provide calories and desirability to foods and beverages. Our aim was to test whether desire for a sweet taste would be better maintained than a desire for other tastes for 3 hours after a test meal. METHODS: Eighty-three young adults ate 2 slices of bread on 2 separate occasions after which they were asked to rate their desire for savory, sweet, fatty, or salty tastes and to specify the number of servings of white rice, pizza, cheese and crackers, sweet biscuits, and pasta they could consume. Desirability was assessed using 100-mm visual analog scales (VAS), with 0 mm representing no desire and 100 mm great desire. RESULTS: When participants provided a quantitative assessment of the servings of foods that they wanted to eat following the bread meal, desire decreased on average for all foods measured, χ2 (3) = 2.63, p = 0.452. Mean (95% confidence interval [CI]) change in VAS taste desirability 30 minutes after eating declined for salty (14.5 mm [10.5, 18.6]), fatty (11.2 mm [7.1, 15.2]), and savory (24.1 mm [19.7, 28.5]) tastes (p < 0.001). Desirability for sweet taste did not differ from baseline (2.4 mm [-2.3, 7.1]), and this level of desire was maintained throughout the 3-hour period. CONCLUSIONS: The data indicate a partial disconnection between appetite and desirability for sweet taste. Physiological and psychosocial reward systems may make it difficult for people to resist sweet tasting foods and beverages. Targeting familial and cultural practices that discourage the consumption of added sugar foods might be useful to combat desire-driven food intake.

The effects of functional fiber on postprandial glycemia, energy intake, satiety, palatability and gastrointestinal wellbeing: a randomized crossover trial.

BACKGROUND: Fiber intakes in developed countries are generally below those recommended by relevant authorities. Given that many people consume fiber-depleted refined-grain products, adding functional fiber will help to increase fiber intakes. The objective of the study was to determine metabolic and sensory effects of adding fiber to bread. METHODS: A double-blind pair of randomized crossover trials with a two-week washout in which two fiber-containing breads were compared with control bread. The functional fiber (fruit fiber and FibreMax) was added to yield 10 g fiber per serve (two slices). Eighty participants (n = 37 fruit fiber and n = 43 FibreMax) consumed one serve of bread (fiber or control) followed three hours later by a pasta meal consumed ad libitum. Outcome measures included glycemia, satiety, palatability, gastrointestinal wellbeing, visual appeal and subsequent energy intake of the pasta meal. Multivariate regression was undertaken to test for differences between treatment and control for blood glucose, satiety, and cumulative energy intake. Satiety responses were also compared by splitting the data into an immediate response after eating (0-30 min) and a return to hunger analysis (30-180 min). A Wilcoxon sign rank test was used for the first component (0-30 min) and Wilcoxon matched-pairs signed-rank test for the second component (30-180 min). Between treatment differences for gastrointestinal wellbeing were tested using Pearson's chi-square test or Fisher's exact test. RESULTS: Consumption of the fruit fiber bread reduced postprandial glycemia by 35% (95% CI 13 to 51; P = 0.004) and cumulative energy intake by 368 kJ (95% CI 163 to 531; P = 0.001). There was little influence on satiety and the bread was rated as having poor taste and smell whilst generating feelings of nausea in some participants. FibreMax enriched bread reduced glycemia by 43% (95% CI 17 to 61; P = 0.004) without influence on energy intake or satiety. Apart from a lower visual appeal, the FibreMax bread was palatable. Neither bread caused gastrointestinal discomfort related to flatulence or bloating. CONCLUSIONS: Enriching bread with 10 g of functional fiber per serve is feasible although reformulation is needed to create not only an acceptable bread, but a desirable product.