Taste preferences and body weight changes in an obesity-prone population

Background: Taste preferences for highly palatable foods rich in sugar and fat may underlie the current epidemic of obesity. Objective: This study aimed to determine whether the hedonic response to sweet and creamy solutions differs between whites and Pima Indians and whether a preference for these tastes predicts weight gain. Design: One hundred twenty-three Pima Indian and 64 white volunteers taste tested solutions of nonfat milk (0.1% fat), whole milk (3.5% fat), half and half (11.3% fat), and cream (37.5% fat) containing 0%, 5%, 10%, or 20% sugar by weight. Solutions were rated for perceived sweetness, creaminess, and pleasantness (hedonic response) on a 100-mm visual analogue scale. Follow-up body weight was measured in 75 Pima Indians 5.5 +/- 3.0 y (average +/- SD) after baseline taste testing. Results: The Pima Indians had a significantly (P = 0.006) lower hedonic response than did the whites (repeated-measures analysis of variance). Neither body size (P = 0.56) nor adiposity (P = 0.86) was a significant predictor of the hedonic response. There was a positive correlation (r = 0.28, P = 0.01) between the maximal hedonic response at baseline and subsequent weight gain in the Pima Indians. Conclusion: Although the Pima Indians liked sweet and creamy solutions less than the whites did, a heightened hedonic response for these solutions among the Pima Indians was associated with weight gain.