Sensory and hedonic associations with macronutrient and energy intakes of lean and obese consumers

OBJECTIVE: To establish differences between lean and obese subjects in subj ective reports of predominant taste and texture attributes of 'foods as eat en', and the relationships of these qualities to hedonic preference and obj ective measures of dietary intake and composition. DESIGN: Free-living subjects received instruction in a laboratory and kept diaries of foods eaten at home, SUBJECTS: 41 lean (body mass index (BMI) 20-25 kg/m(2)) and 35 obese (BMI g reater than or equal to 30 kg/m(2)), non-dieting healthy adults. MEASUREMENTS: Subjects kept four-day weighed dietary intake records, simult aneously assigning ratings for perceived pleasantness and predominant senso ry attributes (taste and texture) of food eaten, and completed the Dutch Ea ting Behaviour questionnaire (DEBQ). Anthropometric measures included body composition assessed by bioelectrical impedance. RESULTS: By all anthropometric measures (except height) the obese group was significantly larger than the lean group, but no significant differences w ere found for DEBQ scores. There were no significant group differences betw een pleasantness scores overall, nor for foods classified by predominant ta ste. Whilst macronutrient intakes did not differ, the obese group's mean di etary energy density was significantly higher, and they reported significan tly greater dietary energy from 'salty' foods. For the obese group, the per centage of 'salty' foods eaten correlated strongly with energy density. A s trong positive association was found between 'liking extremely' and 'sweet' foods for the lean group, but no dear associations were found for any part icular taste and hedonic rating for the obese group. Whilst both groups use d similar texture descriptors, there were not clear or unambiguous differen ces in their assignment or association with other measures. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that obese and lean subjects do not self-s elect diets with markedly different perceived sensory or hedonic attributes . However obese subjects appear to consume a diet higher in energy density, which is particularly associated with intakes of salty/savoury (rather tha n sweet) food items.