Changes in Food Neophobia and Food Preferences During a Weight Reduction Session: Influence of Taste Acuity on the Individual Trajectory

Food neophobia, the reluctance to taste novel food, is an adaptive food behavior in evolutionary terms with survival advantages. When measured by the declarative Food Neophobia Scale (FNS) it appears as a personality and heritable trait, thus susceptible to reduce the food repertory and to limit food variety consumption. Inducing changes in food neophobia would eventually overcome this risk. Furthermore, we know that PROP (6-n –propylthiouracil, a bitter chemical substance) sensitivity is genetically determined and can be used as a marker for food preference: greater PROP sensitivity is linked to a reduced consumption of vegetable and fruit consumption – as the foods taste bitter – which has health implications, and could lead to obesity. One study has shown a relationship between PROP sensitivity of Tunisian adults and their preferences and attitudes toward food. We investigated a possible mediation of taste acuity, (assessed using recognition thresholds for sucrose, citric acid, sodium chloride, and PROP) and supra-threshold perceived intensities for these substances on food preferences (assessed by food familiarity and liking questionnaire on different food categories) and FNS (assessed by using the FNS score) in the context of a 10-month residential weight reduction session (WRS) in massively obese adolescents. Taste acuity appeared to mediate behavioral food-related changes during the WRS. High taste acuity was associated with limited reduction in food neophobia whereas less sensitive subjects showed greater increase in the acceptability of healthy foods – especially fruits and vegetables – and greater reduction in food neophobia. Therefore, taste perception (and particularly PROP perception) appears to predict the magnitude of food-related behavioral change achieved during a WRS. A possible relation and/or superimposed effect of food neophobia and PROP sensitivity on food preference and food use are discussed. Application of these findings will be taken into consideration to start a diet program for obese subjects.