Background: An important question in the regulation of energy intake is whether dietary learning of energy content depends on the food’s characteristics, such as texture. Texture might affect the duration of sensory exposure and eating rate.
Objective: The objective was to investigate whether a long sensory exposure, due to differences in means of consumption and in viscosity, enhances learned associations between sensory signals and metabolic consequences and hence facilitates energy intake compensation.
Design: A total of 105 healthy young adults with a mean (±SD) age of 22 ± 3 y and a body mass index (in kg/m2) of 21.6 ± 1.7 participated in a parallel intervention in 3 groups: liquid yogurt with a straw (liquid/straw; n = 34), liquid yogurt with a spoon (liquid/spoon; n = 36), or semisolid yogurt with a spoon (semisolid/spoon; n = 35). Novel flavored yogurts were offered ad libitum for breakfast in 2 energy densities: low (≈215 kJ/100 g) and high (≈600 kJ/100 g). Subjects were repeatedly exposed to the yogurt products (10 times), and yogurt intake was measured.
Results: Intakes (P = 0.01) and eating rates (P = 0.01) were highest in the liquid/straw group. Average intakes over 10 exposures were 575 ± 260 g for liquid/straw, 475 ± 192 g for liquid/spoon, and 470 ± 223 g for semisolid/spoon; average eating rates were 132 ± 83 g/min for liquid/straw, 106 ± 53 g/min for liquid/spoon, and 105 ± 88 g/min for semisolid/spoon. No significant interaction for intake between intervention group, energy density, and repeated exposure was observed, and intakes of the low- and high-energy-dense yogurts did not change over time in any of the intervention groups.
Conclusions: We observed no energy intake compensation after repeated exposure to yogurt products. Differences in ad libitum yogurt intake could be explained by eating rate, which was affected by the different means of consumption. This trial was registered with the Dutch trial registration at http://www.trialregister.nl/trialreg/admin/rctview.asp?TC=1853 as NTR1853.
From Top Institute Food and Nutrition, Wageningen, Netherlands (PSH, MM, AS, and CdG); the Division of Human Nutrition, Wageningen University, Wageningen, Netherlands (PSH, MM, and CdG); and TNO Quality of Life, Zeist, Netherlands (AS).
Address correspondence to C de Graaf, Division of Human Nutrition, Wageningen University, PO Box 8129, 6700 EV Wageningen, Netherlands. E-mail: [email protected].
