INDIVIDUAL-DIFFERENCES IN SENSORY PREFERENCES FOR FAT IN MODEL SWEET DAIRY-PRODUCTS

Sensory preferences for fat in foods are influenced both by subject characteristics and by the nature of the food stimulus. Hedonic responses to sugar/fat mixtures depend on strong interactions between perceptions of the two ingredients, including tactile as well as gustatory effects. Fat-containing liquid and solid foods, and dessert-type sugar/fat mixtures produce different hedonic response profiles. Body weight, weight history and the presence of eating disorders are associated with differences in hedonic responsiveness to fat among women. This inter-subject variability in hedonic response profiles mandates the use of novel techniques for data analysis. Conventional hedonic response curves mask between-subject differences. Individual patterns of hedonic responses to sugar/fat mixtures are better represented by frequency distributions of maximum hedonic responses or of individual optimal sugar-to-fat ratios.