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It is commonly assumed that sensory impairments occurring with age negatively affect older people’s intake of foods in terms of both quality and quantity. This review discusses evidence published on the effects of age on sensory perception and the consequences for independently living seniors’ perception, liking and intake of food products. Because of anatomical changes in all the senses involved in human food perception, on average seniors perceive a lower flavour intensity than younger adults, are less sensitive to changes in the flavour profile of foods, and show a decreased ability to discriminate between different intensity levels of flavour and/or taste attributes. However, despite these differences in their sensory perception of foods, young adults and seniors seem to differ less in their initial hedonic appraisal of food products. Nonetheless, more research is needed to determine whether multisensory enrichment of foods across different modalities may lead to increased food liking in seniors both with and without olfactory impairment. Although limited, the current evidence suggests that sensory performance may be positively associated with BMI or body weight in specific senior populations. In addition, seniors fail to show a decreased appreciation of an eaten food, thereby increasing the risk of a monotonous diet. Taken together, these findings highlight the need for appropriate interventions and/or foods to improve and maintain adequate quantity and quality of food intake among independently living seniors, and especially those with low sensory performance. Such interventions should be holistic rather than focused on one modality and may also incorporate hedonic modulators such as past experiences, affective factors and external cues, e.g. brand names, labels or food packaging. In interventions and product development, segmentation of the senior consumer market is strongly advised to identify more homogeneous subgroups in order to deal with the large heterogeneity between independently living seniors. It is concluded that one size of the silver food experience will most likely not fit all senior consumers!

This article describes a dataset of facial electromyography and subjective liking data from 70 New Zealand participants used in the study “An unfamiliar presence reduces facial disgust responses to food stimuli” by Nath, Cannon and Philipp [1]. Participants’ facial muscle activity from zygomaticus major, corrugator supercilii, and levator labii superioris was recorded as they viewed and rated food images, and tasted samples of chocolate. Half of the participants were seated alone, and the other half was seated in the presence of the researcher. The data allows for investigations into the effect of social context on hedonic ratings and facial responses to food, and an exploration into the individual factors contributing to differences in facial reactivity. The data includes raw EMG files generated by Acqknowledge 4.2, raw subjective liking files generated by PsychoPy, a table of participant information, the food images stimuli, the PsychoPy code used for stimuli presentation, and the R scripts used to filter, aggregate and analyse the data. Keywords: Facial electromyography, Food preference, Food liking, Social context, Implicit emotion

The purpose of this study was to develop and validate a questionnaire assessing food liking in a French-Canadian population. A questionnaire was developed, in which participants were asked to rate their degree of liking of 50 food items. An expert panel evaluated the content validity. For the validation study, 150 men and women completed the questionnaire twice. An Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) was performed to assess the number of subscales of the questionnaire. Internal consistency and test-retest reliability of the subscales were evaluated. Concurrent validity was assessed through correlations between liking scores and self-reported frequencies of consumption. Comments from the experts led to changes in the list of foods included in the questionnaire. The EFA revealed a two-factor structure for the questionnaire (i.e., savory and sweet foods) and led to the removal of nine items, resulting in a 32-item questionnaire. The two subscales revealed good internal consistency (Cronbach alphas: 0.85 and 0.89) and test-retest reliability (p = 0.84 and 0.86). The questionnaire demonstrated adequate concurrent validity, with moderate correlations between food liking and self-reported frequency of consumption (r = 0.19–0.39, ps < 0.05). This new Food Liking Questionnaire assessing liking of a variety of savory and sweet foods demonstrated good psychometric properties in every validation step. This questionnaire will be useful to explore the role of food liking and its interactions with other factors in predicting eating behaviors and energy intake.

Several studies indicate that the outcome of nutritional and lifestyle interventions can be linked to brain 'signatures' in terms of neural reactivity to food cues. However, 'dieting' is often considered in a rather broad sense, and no study so far investigated modulations in brain responses to food cues occurring over an intervention specifically aiming to reduce sugar intake. We studied neural activity and liking in response to visual food cues in 14 intensive consumers of sugar-sweetened beverages before and after a 3-month replacement period by artificially-sweetened equivalents. Each time, participants were presented with images of solid foods differing in fat content and taste quality while high-density electroencephalography was recorded. Contrary to our hypotheses, there was no significant weight loss over the intervention period and no changes were observed in food liking or in neural activity in regions subserving salience and reward attribution. However, neural activity in response to high-fat, sweet foods was significantly reduced from pre-to post-intervention in prefrontal regions often linked to impulse control. This decrease in activity was associated with weight loss failure, suggesting an impairment in individuals' ability to exert control and adjust their solid food intake over the intervention period. Our findings highlight the need to implement multidisciplinary approaches when aiming to help individuals lose body weight.

Food choice is defined as providing the opportunity for an individual to select the food he or she wants to consume while food variety is defined as providing an individual with foods that differ on at least one sensory characteristic. Literature shows that providing food choice or providing food variety may increase meal enjoyment and food intake. However, these two factors have been mainly investigated separately, while they may actually co-occur in real-life settings. In fact, in many out-of-home catering situations, individuals have the possibility to choose as many dishes as they desire from among different proposals for their meal. The aim of the present study was to assess the impact of choice and/or variety on food liking and food intake during a lunch. Fifty-nine no rmal-weight adults were recruited under the condition that they equally liked three vegetable dishes (green beans with butter, zucchinis with olive oil, spinach with cream). Volunteers participated in four sessions at lunch time (i) participants were served with one dish randomly selected from among three alternatives (no-choice/no-variety condition); (ii) participants chose one dish from among three alternatives (choice/no-variety condition); (iii) participants were served with the three dishes (no-choice/variety condition); and (iv) participants chose as many dishes as they desired from among three alternatives (choice/variety condition). Outcomes included vegetable intake (plates were weighted before and after consumption) and vegetable liking (participants rated their liking on a 10-point hedonic scale). Results showed that providing choice increased vegetable liking and vegetable intake, while offering a variety of vegetables only increased their liking. No synergy effe ct between choice and variety was observed on vegetable liking and vegetable intake (i.e. the effect in the choice/variety condition was not significantly higher than the effects in no-choice/variety and the choice/no-variety conditions).

Most adults consume more fat than is recommended in the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. We examined whether adding herbs and spices to reduced-fat foods would improve their consumer liking. We recruited adults 18–65 years old to taste three lunch conditions: full fat (FF), reduced fat with no added spice (RF), and reduced fat plus spice (RFS). Subjects rated their liking of a meatloaf entrée, vegetable side dish, pasta side dish, and overall meal on a 9-point hedonic Likert scale. Subjects came weekly for 3 weeks to consume meals and were randomized to the condition order. We enrolled 148 subjects who were predominantly female (n = 101, 68%), had a mean age of 35.9 years, and body mass index of 24.4 kg/m2. Subjects reported habitual diets as 36% of total calories from fat (2005 Block Food Frequency Questionnaire). Reducing fat content alone significantly dropped overall liking of the meal compared with FF and RFS conditions (6.29 RF vs. 7.05 FF, P

Milk and dairy products constitute an important source of energy and nutrients for humans. Food preferences may significantly influence the actual consumption (and thus nutrition) of people at the population level. The objective of the present large-scale survey was to specify current preferences for milk and dairy products with regard to age and sex. The study was conducted across the Moravia region, Czech Republic, on a sample of 451 individuals divided into 4 age groups: children, adolescents, young adults, and elderly people. A graphic scale questionnaire was administered, with respondents rating their degree of preference for each food item by drawing a mark on a 35 mm line. Out of the 115 items in the questionnaire, 11 items represented dairy products. Data was analysed by means of a general linear model using IBM SPSS Statistics software. Preference for milk was lower in the elderly group than the other groups (P < 0.01). In children, the most preferred dairy product was cream, which was in contrast with the elderly group. Significant sex differences were only found with low-fat yoghurt (P < 0.01). The overall preference for dairy products (21.6) was lower than the average preference for all foods on the list (22.5). The cross-sectional study revealed intergenerational differences in preferences for specific dairy products, which were most marked in case of cream, processed cheese, blue cheese, and buttermilk. The knowledge of these differences might help promote more focused action at the community level directed at increasing the overall consumption of dairy products in the population.

International audience; Several authors showed that providing choice may increase food liking and food intake. However, the impact of choice may be modulated by assortment's characteristics, such as the number of alternatives or their dissimilarity. The present study compared the impact of choice on food liking and intake under the two following conditions: (1) when choosing a product to consume from among similar products versus dissimilar products; and (2) when choosing a product to consume from among pleasant products versus unpleasant products. Two experiments were carried out using the same design: the "apple puree" experiment (n = 80), where the volunteers choose from among similar products (apple purees varying in texture) and the "dessert" experiment (n = 80), where the volunteers choose from among dissimilar products (fruit dessert, dairy dessert, custard, pudding). During the first session, participants rated their liking for 12 products (apples purees or desserts). Then the participants were divided into a "pleasant" group (n = 40) in which volunteers were assigned three pleasant products, and an "unpleasant" group (n = 40) in which volunteers were assigned three unpleasant products. Finally, all of the volunteers participated in a choice session volunteers were presented with their three assigned products and asked to choose one of the products, and a no-choice session volunteers were served with one product that was randomly selected from among their three assigned products. Providing choice led to an increase in food liking in both experiments and an increase in food intake only for the desserts, namely only when the volunteers chose the product to consume from among "not too similar" alternatives. No effect of assortment's pleasantness was observed. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Obesity is a heterogeneous condition with obese individuals displaying different eating patterns. Growing evidence suggests that there is a subgroup of obese adults that is marked by frequent and intense food cravings and addiction-like consumption of high-calorie foods. Little is known, however, about such a subgroup of obese individuals in childhood and adolescence. In the present study, a sample of children and adolescents with a wide range in body mass was investigated and trait food craving, liking for and intake of high- and low-calorie foods was measured. One-hundred and forty-two children and adolescents (51.4% female, n = 73; Mage = 13.7 years, SD = 2.25; MBMI-SDS = 1.26, SD = 1.50) completed the Food Cravings Questionnaire-Trait, then viewed pictures of high- and low-calorie foods and rated their liking for them, and subsequently consumed some of these foods in a bogus taste test. Contrary to expectations, higher body mass was associated with lower consumption of high-calorie foods. However, there was an interaction between body mass and trait food craving when predicting food consumption: in obese participants, higher trait food craving was associated with higher consumption of high-calorie foods and this association was not found in normal-weight participants. The relationship between trait food craving and high-calorie food consumption within obese individuals was mediated by higher liking for high-calorie foods (but not by liking for low-calorie foods). Thus, similar to adults, a subgroup of obese children and adolescents characterized by high trait food craving seems to exist, calling for specific targeted treatment strategies Johannes Hofmann, Adrian Meule, Julia Reichenberger, Daniel Weghuber, Elisabeth Ardelt-Gattinger and Jens Blechert

The majority of adults in the UK and US are overweight or obese due to multiple factors including excess energy intake. Training people to inhibit simple motor responses (key presses) to high-energy density food pictures reduces intake in laboratory studies. We examined whether online response inhibition training reduced real-world food consumption and weight in a community sample of adults who were predominantly overweight or obese (N = 83). Participants were allocated in a randomised, double-blind design to receive four 10-min sessions of either active or control go/no-go training in which either high-energy density snack foods (active) or non-food stimuli (control) were associated with no-go signals. Participants' weight, energy intake (calculated from 24-h food diaries), daily snacking frequency and subjective food evaluations were measured for one week pre- and post-intervention. Participants also provided self-reported weight and monthly snacking frequency at pre-intervention screening, and one month and six months after completing the study. Participants in the active relative to control condition showed significant weight loss, reductions in daily energy intake and a reduction in rated liking of high-energy density (no-go) foods from the pre-to post-intervention week. There were no changes in self-reported daily snacking frequency. At longer-term follow-up, the active group showed significant reductions in self-reported weight at six months, whilst both groups reported significantly less snacking at one- and six-months. Excellent rates of adherence (97%) and positive feedback about the training suggest that this intervention is acceptable and has the potential to improve public health by reducing energy intake and overweight., Graphical abstract, Highlights • We examine whether response inhibition training alters real-world eating behaviour. • Food no-go training (active) reduces energy intake, weight and food liking. • Non-food no-go training (control) has no effect pre-to post-intervention. • Both groups show reduced snacking at one and six-month follow-ups. • Active training is associated with self-reported weight loss at six-months.

The aim of the present study was to compare total food intake, total and relative edible plate waste and self-reported food likings between school lunch based on the new Nordic diet (NND) and packed lunch from home. In two 3-month periods in a cluster-randomised controlled unblinded cross-over study 3rd- and 4th-grade children (n187) from two municipal schools received lunch meals based on NND principles and their usual packed lunch (control). Food intake and plate waste (n1558) were calculated after weighing lunch plates before and after the meal for five consecutive days and self-reported likings (n905) assessed by a web-based questionnaire. Average food intake was 6 % higher for the NND period compared with the packed lunch period. The quantity of NND intake varied with the menu (P< 0·0001) and was positively associated with self-reported likings. The edible plate waste was 88 (sd80) g for the NND period and 43 (sd60) g for the packed lunch period whereas the relative edible plate waste was no different between periods for meals having waste (n1050). Edible plate waste differed between menus (P< 0·0001), with more waste on soup days (36 %) and vegetarian days (23 %) compared with the packed lunch period. Self-reported likings were negatively associated with percentage plate waste (P< 0·0001). The study suggests that portion sizes need to be considered in new school meal programmes. New strategies with focus on reduction of plate waste, children's likings and nutritious school meals are crucial from both a nutritional, economic and environmental point of view.

International audience; Introduction et but de l’étude Chaque jour, tout individu est confronté à de nombreux choix alimentaires, de l’acte d’achat jusqu’à la situation de consommation. Il a déjà été démontré qu’un aliment était davantage apprécié quand l’individu pouvait le choisir et que le niveau d’appréciation d’un aliment influençait la quantité consommée. Les objectifs de cette étude ont été de tester : 1. l’influence du choix d’un aliment sur le plaisir de le manger et la quantité consommée, 2. l’influence de la diversité sensorielle entre des produits proposés sur la prise alimentaire. Matériel et méthodes Deux études de protocole identique différant selon les espace-produits ont été réalisées : la première a porté sur 12 purées de pommes variant uniquement selon la texture ; la seconde sur un univers de 12 desserts variant selon plusieurs dimensions sensorielles (texture, couleur, saveur…). Pour chaque étude, 80 volontaires ont été recrutés. Ils ont participé à 3 séances hebdomadaires à l’heure du déjeuner aux cours desquelles un même plat a été servi en amont de la consommation du dessert. Lors de la première séance, les sujets ont attribué une note d’appréciation à chacun des 12 produits. Trois produits d’appréciation similaire ont alors été sélectionnés pour chaque individu. Lors des 2 séances suivantes, chaque sujet a dû choisir un dessert à consommer ad libitum parmi les 3 produits proposés (séance Choix) ou a dû consommer ad libitum un produit imposé parmi les 3 sélectionnés (séance Non-Choix). À chaque séance, les sujets ont attribué une note d’appréciation du dessert consommé et ont évalué leur satisfaction pour le déroulement de la séance ; les quantités consommées ont été également mesurées. Résultats et Analyse statistique Dans les deux études, les notes hédoniques des desserts choisis étaient significativement supérieures en situation de choix qu’en situation de non-choix (étude 1 :pConclusion Lorsque les individus peuvent choisir un aliment pendant leur repas, leur plaisir de manger est augmenté, que ce soit sur l’appréciation du produit choisi ou la satisfaction de l’ensemble du repas. Ce résultat serait associé à une augmentation de la quantité consommée si le choix porte entre des produits dont les différences oro-sensorielles sont importantes. Donner la possibilité de choisir son aliment parmi d’autres pourrait donc être un levier efficace pour inciter les individus à manger des aliments sous-consommés.

Olfaction plays a significant role in the sensing of foods. However, little information is available at any age on the relationship between the hedonic responses to given food odours and the effective liking and disliking of foods bearing these same odours. The present study aimed to assess the relationships between food odour liking and liking of the corresponding foods. This study relied on a longitudinal design involving 235 toddlers who were assessed for both their observed liking of a set of food odours and their parent-reported liking of foods at 12 and 22 months. To assess odour liking, eight odorants representing pleasant and unpleasant foods were presented in bottles along with neutral stimuli. The participants' behaviour towards the odorized and control bottles was measured in terms of mouthing, a behaviour considered to reflect attraction. For each odorant, odour-liking scores were calculated relative to the control. The participants' food liking was rated by the parents at the periods 12-15 and 21-24 months. Positive correlations were found between the odour-liking scores for some of the odours and the liking of the associated foods. These correlations concerned foods with strong, unpleasant flavours at 12 months only, suggesting that the olfactory system acts as an 'alarm' system during this period of food transition. At 22 months, no significant correlations were found, except a marginal one for green vegetables. Whatever the age, no significant correlations were found for pleasant odours. Thus, some correlations were found between the observed odour liking for food-related odours and the liking for the corresponding foods. However, these relationships are subject to developmental fluctuations depending on the hedonic nature of the odorants and the age when infants are tested.

The role of taste on food preferences has already been investigated, however, little is known about the role of olfaction. The main objectives of this work were to assess infants’ olfactory responses, their dynamic during the first two years of life, and also their links with early food exposures, food liking and infants’ food neophobia. This work was conducted within a longitudinal study named OPALINE (Observatory of food preferences in infants and children). Olfactory responses were assessed, in 8-, 12- and 22-month-old infants, towards pleasant odours, such as vanilla, and unpleasant odours, such as fish. The results reveal that, from 8 months, infants can discriminate pleasant and unpleasant odours. However, only avoidance responses are observed towards some unpleasant odours; no attraction responses are highlighted during the first two years of life. Our results also suggest a plasticity of olfactory responses. Only responses towards some unpleasant odours are stable between two consecutive ages, suggesting that negative hedonic responses towards food odours would appear earlier than positive ones. Concerning the effects of early food exposure, it appears that the more an infant has been exposed, in utero or during breastfeeding, to some unpleasant food odours, the least s/he exhibits avoidance responses towards these food odours at 8 months, but not beyond. When complementary feeding has begun (8 months), olfaction does not seem to impact new food liking. However, at 12 months, olfaction can play a role of modulator in liking of the foods with strong flavour. This role is not observed anymore at 22 months. Our results also highlight that differential olfactory responses, and not gustatory ones, are linked to infants’ food neophobia suggesting that only odours contribute to the suspicion towards unfamiliar foods during the second year of life. This work stresses that early sensory exposures influence responses towards unpleasant odours at the onset of complementary feeding, which is a favourable period to food acceptance. Then, olfaction can play a role in food liking by acting as an alarm system protecting the infants against potentially harmful food, Si le rôle de la gustation sur le développement des préférences alimentaires a été étudié par le passé, il n’en ait pas de même du rôle de l’olfaction. Les objectifs de ce travail de thèse étaient d’étudier les réponses olfactives des nourrissons, leur dynamique au cours des deux premières années de vie, ainsi que leurs relations avec les expositions aromatiques précoces, l’appréciation alimentaire et le comportement néophobique des nourrissons. Ce travail, s’inscrivant dans le cadre de l’étude longitudinale OPALINE (Observatoire des Préférences ALImentaire du Nourrisson et de l’Enfant), a permis d’évaluer les réponses olfactives envers des odeurs alimentaires agréables, comme la vanille, et désagréables, comme le poisson, chez les nourrissons de 8, 12 et 22 mois. Les résultats révèlent que, dès 8 mois, les nourrissons sont capables de discriminer les odeurs agréables des odeurs désagréables. Toutefois, si des réponses d’évitement envers certaines odeurs désagréables sont observées, aucune réponse d’attraction n’est décrite au cours des deux premières années de la vie. De plus, nos résultats mettent également en évidence une certaine plasticité des réponses olfactives. Seules les réponses à quelques odeurs alimentaires désagréables sont stables entre deux âges consécutifs suggérant que les réponses hédoniques négatives vis-à-vis d’odeurs alimentaires apparaitraient plus précocement que les réponses hédoniques positives.Concernant les effets des expositions aromatiques précoces, il apparaît que plus un nourrisson a été exposé, in utero ou durant l’allaitement, aux notes aromatiques désagréables de certains aliments, moins il aura de réponses d’évitement face aux odeurs de ces aliments à 8 mois, mais pas au-delà.Lors de la diversification alimentaire (8 mois), la composante olfactive ne semble pas avoir d’impact sur l’appréciation des aliments nouvellement introduits. En revanche, à 12 mois, la composante olfactive pourrait jouer un rôle de modulateur dans l’appréciation des aliments à flaveur prononcée. Ce rôle n’est plus observé à 22 mois. Nos résultats mettent également en évidence que la réactivité différentielle à différentes odeurs, et non à différentes saveurs, est liée au degré de néophobie du nourrisson, suggérant que seules les odeurs contribuent à la méfiance envers les aliments nouveaux au cours de la seconde année de vie. Ce travail met en avant que les expositions aromatiques précoces peuvent influencer les réponses olfactives au début de la diversification alimentaire, période favorable à l’acceptation des aliments. Autour de l’âge d’un an, quand le répertoire alimentaire des nourrissons s’élargit et intègre des aliments dits « adultes », l’odorat jouerait un rôle clé dans l’appréciation des aliments en agissant comme un système d’alarme protégeant le nourrisson des aliments potentiellement dangereux

National audience; Introduction et but de l'étude: S’alimenter est un acte indispensable à la vie qui fait intervenir l’ensemble de nos fonctions sensorielles. Au-delà de ces fonctions, nous apprécions, aussi, davantage un repas lorsque le plat est à notre goût ou lorsqu’il est présenté avec soin et avec de la variété. Au cours de l’avancée en âge, pathologies et dépendance constituent des facteurs de dénutrition importants (HAS 2007) et augmentent le risque de placement en institution. En collectivité, le libre choix disparait ce qui peut réduire sensiblement le plaisir des repas. L’objectif du travail était d’identifier des leviers pour lutter contre la problématique nutritionnelle du sujet âgé par une voie de retour au plaisir à manger pour améliorer la prise alimentaire. Nous avons joué sur deux leviers en régime normal, levier intrinsèque (LI) (amélioration de la qualité organoleptique du repas proposé aux seniors) ou levier extrinsèque (LE) (enrichissement de l’environnement sensoriel du repas, en proposant des condiments et deux légumes au lieu d’un seul). Matériel et méthodes: Quatre repas expérimentaux (un repas standard contre trois repas expérimentaux : LI, LE et LI×LE) ont été menés en Etablissement d’Hébergement pour Personnes Agées Dépendantes (EHPAD) auprès de 111 résidents sous régimes normaux. Chaque repas était répété deux fois. Résultats: L’amélioration de la qualité organoleptique du repas et l’introduction de variété ont chacun entraîné une augmentation significative des quantités consommées (conditions LI, LE et LIxLE) et de l’appréciation du repas (LI et LIxLE). Conclusion: Ces résultats indiquent que l’amélioration de recettes peut augmenter le plaisir et la prise alimentaire et qu’une modification simple et peu coûteuse par la mise à disposition de condiments peut améliorer la satisfaction des résidents. Cette étude permet d’apporter une nouvelle voie de recherche dans la lutte contre la dénutrition et plus largement au bien-être des résidents. Références: HAS - Haute Autorité de Santé (2007) Stratégies de prise en charge en cas de dénutrition protéino-énergétique chez les personnes âgées. Recommandations d’Avril 2007.

Communication orale (résumé 1 p.) ; http://www.pangborn2013.com/; International audience

Responsiveness to certain bitter tasting compounds, such us PROP (6-n-propylthiouracil), is a variable trait both within and between human populations. Genetic variations in the TAS2R38 taste gene accounts for a major portion of phenotypic variation in PROP taste sensitivity. PROP-related differences have been also shown to influence food preferences and dietary behaviour, but this relation is extremely complex and findings are not always uniform. In this study we first examined the link between taste responses to PROP and self-reported food preferences in six different populations of the Caucasus and Central Asia, located along the ancient Silk Road. In addition, we performed a candidate gene study aimed to identify if other genes of the TAS2R family contribute to the PROP phenotype, in association with TAS2R38. We found a strong relationship between PROP tasting and food preferences (Mantel test r=0.67, p-value=0.009) using a “population-based approach”, in which we exploit phenotypic differences between populations comparing a distance matrix based on PROP taste responses and a matrix based on food preferences. No evidence of correlation was found between the distance matrix of food preferences and the matrix of genetic distance based on TAS2R38. Preliminary results of candidate gene analysis allow us to identify other TAS2R genes that could cooperate with TAS2R38 in the modulation of PROP perception and as consequence also food liking. Our results suggest that PROP status is probably a marker for general taste sensitivity and as such is a major driver of food preferences. The “population-based approach” proved to be a good method to clarify the controversial relation between PROP perception and food liking and could possibly be applied to other traits as well. In addition, our work represents a starting point to study the involvement of multiple genes in PROP perception and food liking.

Variations at the TAS2R38 gene account for the major portion of differences in PROP (6-n-propylthiouracil) taste perception, which have been shown to influence food preferences and dietary behaviour. We examined the link between PROP taste responses, food preferences and TAS2R genes in six different populations of the Caucasus and Central Asia, located along the Silk Road. We reported, for the first time, genotypic frequencies of the TAS2R38 gene and PROP phenotype distribution in these populations. We found a strong relationship between PROP tasting and food preferences (r=0.67, p-value=0.009) using a “population-based approach”, in which we exploit phenotypic differences between populations comparing a distance matrix based on PROP taste responses and a matrix based on food preferences. No evidence of correlation was found between the distance matrix of food preference and the matrix of genetic distance based on TAS2R38 or the matrix based on the whole genome. Preliminary results of candidate gene analysis allowed us to identify others TAS2R genes that could cooperate with TAS2R38 in the modulation of PROP perception and as consequence food liking. Besides increasing the knowledge of worldwide TAS2R38 prevalences and bitter taste, our results show that differences in food preferences among populations correlate with PROP status but not with the TAS2R38 gene, suggesting that PROP status is probably a marker for general taste sensitivity and as such is a major driver of food preferences. In addition, our work represent a starting point to study the involvement of multiple genes in bitter perception and food liking.

The relationship between individual differences in taste perception and personality dimensions has not been thoroughly examined. The genetically determined sensitivity to certain bitter tastes, such as PROP and PTC, is one of the most studied individual differences in humans. It is in part explained from genotypic variation of TAS2R38 gene, but others factors including personal characteristics could be involved. Our study aimed to analyse the possible relationship between personality traits, PROP bitterness and food preferences. We report data obtained from a total of ~700 healthy individuals (aged 18-76) coming from 6 different small villages in the Friuli Venezia Giulia region in northern Italy. PROP taste phenotype was determined using a method previously described (Zhao et al, 2003). Individuals completed also a food preferences questionnaire on different foods, rating their liking of each item on a 9-point scale ranging from “like extremely” to “dislike extremely”. Standardized questionnaires were administered to characterize subjects on selected personality traits (Temperament and Character Inventory – TCI) and alexithymia (Toronto Alexithymia Scale – TAS-20), a personality construct characterized by an impaired ability to identify, differentiate and describe feelings and to distinguish between feelings and bodily sensations of emotional arousal. Regression analysis detected an association between PROP intensity and alexithymia (TAS Total score), such that high alexithymic individuals showed a reduced PROP responsiveness (p-value=0.0147). Furthermore, these same subjects exhibited a statistically significant lower preference for specific foods, including broccoli, red radish, artichokes, black olives, fava beans. Our results suggest that bitter taste perception and food preferences could be modulated by difficulty in distinguishing and describing feelings and emotional responses to stimuli that characterized the alexithymic personality. This study can also provide insight to a clearer understanding of the motivations of consumers and their effects to choice diets.

International audience; Whether food liking may be a risk factor of overconsumption and overweight/obesity remains a controversial issue. So far, most studies used subjective reports to assess consummatory behavior, approaches that might overlook subtle or implicit hedonic changes to sensory properties of foods. Therefore, we used a cue-exposure approach by recording different measures of hedonic processes (orofacial reactivity, self-rated pleasantness, food preference) in 6-11 years old overweight (n=20) and normal-weight (n=20) children. Children were exposed to the smell and sight of high and low-energy density food stimuli and to non-food stimuli during pre- and post-prandial states. Their facial and verbal responses were videotaped and parent's reports of children's eating styles and appetitive traits were collected using the Children's Eating Behavior Questionnaire (CEBQ). Results showed that orofacial reactivity, as an objective measure of anticipatory liking, was more discriminative than self reports, with overweight children displaying more lip sucking than normal-weight children when exposed to high energy food pictures and to food odorants. Orofacial reactivity to food cues was also associated with BMI and children's eating styles (food responsiveness, emotional overeating, and desire to drink). Finally, overweight children classified more frequently non-food odorants as members of the food category during the pre-prandial state than during the post-prandial state, suggesting a possible influence of affective/motivational bias on odor categorization. Our findings suggest that orofacial responsiveness may be relevant to assess the sensitivity to energy-dense food reward cues in overweight children and for signaling, as an index of anticipatory liking, a potential risk for the development of overweight/obesity.

Meeting Abstract n°484 . WOS: 000288862900481; International audience

International audience; The relationship between taste acuity and food neophobia, food familiarity and liking has been studied in the context of a residential Weight Reduction Session (WRS, mean duration: 10 months) in 39 obese adolescents. Taste acuity was assessed using recognition thresholds for sucrose, citric acid, sodium chloride and 6-nprophylthiouracyl (PROP) and supra-threshold perceived intensities for sucrose, sodium chloride and PROP. Food neophobia was assessed by using the Food Neophobia Scale at the beginning and at the end of the WRS. At the same times, a Food Familiarity and Liking Questionnaire was used to assess changes in food familiarity and likes or dislikes for different food categories. Taste acuity appeared to mediate behavioural food-related changes during the WRS. High taste acuity was associated with limited reductions in food neophobia; less sensitive subjects showed greater increases in the acceptability of healthy foods, especially fruits and vegetables. Therefore, taste perception (and particularly PROP perception) appears to be a predictor of the magnitude of food-related behavioural change achieved during a Weight Reduction Session.

Previous studies in humans have shown that short to middle-term pre-exposure to multiple foods can reduce the negative response to novel foods (neophobia). In order to explore the effects of a long-term exposure to varied foods on food neophobia, we studied a population of obese adolescents observed in a longitudinal protocol in which the multiple food experiences are induced by a residential weight reduction program (WRP) that encourages the consumption of a wide variety of foods. Seventy-two massively obese adolescents (22 boys) filled the food neophobia scale (FNS, [Pliner, P., & Hobden, K. (1992). Development of a scale to measure the trait of food neophobia in humans. Appetite 19, 105-120]) and an ad hoc food familiarity and liking questionnaire at the beginning and at the end of the program (mean duration: 8.9 months). Their scores were compared to those of a control group of 51 adolescents (14 boys) tested within a similar period. FNS results show a decrease of food neophobia, without significant difference between the control group and the WRP subjects, although only WRP have encountered new foods experiences as attested by the familiarity and liking results. Methodological considerations, concerning the characteristics of the participants, the nature of the multiple food exposure and the food neophobia measurements, will be proposed to explain differences among studies.