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RESEARCH PRODUCT

Taste Perception Profiles and Adiposity in Older Adults with Metabolic Syndrome – PREDIMED-Plus

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OBJECTIVES: In humans, perception for each taste (sweet, salt, sour, bitter and umami) has been independently related to food preferences and intake. Yet, the collective influence of perception of all 5 tastes on diet and cardiometabolic health remains unexplored. Therefore, our objective was to investigate the relations between a collective measure of taste perception – “taste perception profiles” – and adiposity. METHODS: We analyzed baseline data of 367 older adults (55–75 years; 55% female) with metabolic syndrome (MetS) participating in the PREDIMED-Plus Valencia trial. Taste perception was assessed for sweet, salt, sour, bitter and umami using sucrose, NaCl, citric acid, phenylthiocarbamide and monopotassium L-glutamate, respectively, and evaluated on a 0–5 scale. Taste perception profiles were derived from perception scores using predictive modeling and k-means clustering (KCA). Multivariable linear regression was used to evaluate the relations between taste perception profiles and BMI, body weight (BW) and waist circumference (WC), after adjustment for confounders. RESULTS: KCA identified 7 taste perception profiles: Low All (n = 79), High Umami (n = 61), High Bitter (n = 49), High Bitter & Umami (n = 44), High Sweet, Salt & Sour (n = 51), High All But Bitter (n = 49) and High All But Umami (n = 34). After adjusting for age, sex, physical activity, smoking, diabetes, medication use and energy intake, BMI, BW and WC were highest for the Low All profile (adjusted means: 33.4 kg/m(2), 87.5 kg and 108.4 cm; reference). Comparatively, mean BMI and BW were lower for High Bitter (–1.9 kg/m(2); –5.4 kg), High Bitter & Umami (–1.7; –4.7), High Sweet, Salt & Sour (–1.3; –4.6) and High All But Bitter (–1.7; –5.0) profiles; and WC was lower for High Bitter & Umami (–3.4 cm) and High All But Bitter (–4.9) profiles (all P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Taste perception profiles derived via multivariable clustering were related to adiposity in older adults with MetS – individuals with the Low All profile had higher BMI, BW and WC; others had more complex relations. Thus, perception of and interactions among the 5 tastes may collectively influence diet and cardiometabolic health. FUNDING SOURCES: ARS/USDA, HNRCA Cassidy Student Research Award, Spanish Ministry of Health (Instituto de Salud Carlos III; SAF2016–80,532-R) and Generalitat Valenciana.