Journal
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF CLINICAL NUTRITION
Volume 66, Issue 1, Pages 47-52Publisher
SPRINGERNATURE
DOI: 10.1038/ejcn.2011.127
Keywords
diet; plant-based foods; food neophobia; bitter taste; 6-n-propylthiouracil sensitivity; preschool children
Categories
Funding
- Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, Japan
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Background/Objectives: Diets rich in plant-based foods such as vegetables, fruits and soy foods have been suggested to have beneficial effects on health. However, phytochemicals contained in plant-based foods are generally bitter and acrid. We investigated whether intake of vegetables, fruits and soy foods is associated with sensitivity to bitterness and reluctance to eat new foods (food neophobia) in Japanese preschool children. Subjects/Methods: Subjects of this cross-sectional study were healthy Japanese, 167 boys and 156 girls, aged 4-6 years. Intake of vegetables, fruits and soy foods was estimated from 3-day dietary records. Subjects were classified as either tasters or non-tasters of 6-n-propylthiouracil (PROP) based on their ability to taste 0.56 mmol/l PROP. Information on each child's age, height, weight, food neophobia status and food variety, as well as maternal diet and parental control over the child's eating, was obtained by a parent-administered questionnaire. Food neophobia was assessed using the Child Food Neophobia Scale (CFNS). Results: A high intake of vegetables was significantly associated with a low CFNS score in boys after controlling for covariates (P = 0.0008). Among the boys, soy food intake was significantly higher in PROP non-tasters than in tasters, except those with low CFNS scores (P = 0.0019). High intake of soy foods was significantly associated with a low neophobia score in PROP tasters but not in non-tasters (P = 0.0024). Conclusions: These data suggest that sensitivity to bitter taste and food neophobia may influence the consumption of vegetables and soy foods among Japanese preschool boys. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition (2012) 66, 47-52; doi:10.1038/ejcn.2011.127; published online 6 July 2011
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available