Le sel et l'abondance de sel dans le formatage des goûts...

 Ce qui est fascinant dans cette étude c'est que le contact avec des aliments contenant des amidons est associé à une tendance vers le choix de mets salés et donc ensuite vers l'ajout de sel dès qu'il est en consommation libre.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The development of salty taste acceptance is related to dietary experience in human infants: a prospective study1,2,3

Leslie J Stein,
Beverly J Cowart, and
Gary K Beauchamp


- Author Affiliations
1From Monell Chemical Senses Center, Philadelphia, PA.


- Author Notes



↵2 Supported by the NIH (DC 00882).



↵3 Address correspondence to LJ Stein, Monell Chemical Senses Center, 3500 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104-3308. E-mail: stein@monell.org.

Abstract


Background: Sodium intake is related to hypertension and other diseases, but little is known about the early development of salty taste acceptance.


Objective: The prospective study asked whether dietary experience with foods containing sodium is associated with development of infant salty taste preference.


Design: Infants (n = 61) were tested at 2 and 6 mo to assess their response to 0.17 and 0.34 mol NaCl/L in water. Intake tests consisted of randomized double-blind 120-s exposure to salt solutions and water. Acceptance, calculated as solution intake relative to water, was examined as a function of exposure to starchy table food—a significant source of sodium. Dietary exposure (yes or no) was defined by maternal report. As a control, similar comparisons were based on exposure to fruit table food. A subset of 26 subjects returned at 36–48 mo for assessment of salty taste hedonics and preference.


Results: Dietary experience was related to salt acceptance, with only those infants previously exposed to starchy table foods (n = 26) preferring the salty solutions at 6 mo (P = 0.007). Fruit exposure was not associated with sodium chloride acceptance. Infants eating starchy table foods at 6 mo were more likely to lick salt from the surface of foods at preschool age (P = 0.007) and tended to be more likely to eat plain salt (P = 0.08).


Conclusions: The findings suggest an influential role of early dietary experience in shaping salty taste responses of infants and young children.