Dietary customs and food availability shape the preferences for basic tastes: A cross-cultural study among Polish, Tsimane' and Hadza societies

Is the perception of odour pleasantness shared across cultures and ecological conditions? Evidence from Amazonia, East Africa, New Guinea, Malaysia and Poland

What makes an odour pleasant or unpleasant? The inherent properties of the constituent chemical compounds, or the nose of the beholder, driven by idiosyncratic differences and culture-specific learning? Here, 582 individuals, including Tanzanian Hadza hunter-gatherers, Amazonian Tsimane' horticulturalists, Yali from the Papuan highlands and two industrialized populations (Poles, Malaysians), rated the pleasantness of 15 odour samples. We find considerable similarities in odour assessments across cultures, but our data do not fully support a claim regarding the universality of smell preferences. Despite cross-cultural similarities in olfactory assessments, probably driven by odour properties, we suggest that odour availability in ecological and cultural niches bears an undeniable effect on human odour preferences.

Perceptions and self-management of a healthy diet among middle-aged adults with risk of stroke in North China: a qualitative exploration

OBJECTIVE

Although stroke is prevalent among older people, there is a rising incidence among the younger subpopulations, particularly middle-aged adults. A healthy diet is one of the key modifiable factors to primary prevention of stroke among these subpopulations, yet there is limited understanding of the dietary habits among middle agers who have the risk factor(s) but no occurrence of stroke. This study aims to explore the views on perceptions and the self-management of middle-aged adults at risk of stroke on a healthy diet and to identify the enablers and barriers that could inform the future development of dietary interventions.

DESIGN

This study used an interpretive descriptive qualitative design, employing semistructured purposive sampling for focus group discussions. Thematic analysis was conducted on the transcribed interviews and field notes, facilitated by NVivo 12.0 Plus software.

SETTING

Community settings in Zhengzhou City, Henan Province.

PARTICIPANTS

Middle-aged adults (aged 45-59) were identified as at risk of stroke due to the presence of one or more modifiable risk factors.

RESULT

A total of seven focus group discussions were audio recorded. Four main themes emerged, which were: (1) cognitive understanding of a healthy diet; (2) dietary practices; (3) knowledge acquisition and (4) barriers to dietary adherence.

CONCLUSIONS

The middle-aged adults at risk of stroke were generally aware of the risk and attempted to practise healthy eating. The existing educational programmes on following a healthy diet in the prevention of disease need to be made more comprehensible, accessible and equitable, especially for those from socioeconomically disadvantaged communities.

Taste preferences, cardiometabolic diseases and mild cognitive impairment: a prospective cohort analysis of older Chinese adults

Taste preference is a pivotal predictor of nutrient intake, yet its impact on mild cognitive impairment (MCI) remains poorly understood. We aimed to investigate the association between taste preferences and MCI and the role of cardiometabolic diseases (CMD) in this association. The study included older adults, aged 65-90 years, with normal cognitive function at baseline who were enrolled in the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (CLHLS) from 2008 to 2018. MCI was measured by the Mini-Mental State Examination, and multivariable Cox regression models were applied. Among 6423 participants, 2534 (39·45 %) developed MCI with an incidence rate of 63·12 - per 1000 person-years. Compared with individuals with insipid taste, those preferring sweetness or spiciness had a higher MCI risk, while saltiness was associated with a lower risk. This association was independent of objective dietary patterns and was more pronounced among urban residents preferring sweetness and illiterate participants preferring spiciness. Notably, among sweet-liking individuals, those with one CMD experienced a significant detrimental effect, and those with co-occurring CMD had a higher incidence rate of MCI. Additionally, regional variations were observed: sweetness played a significant role in regions known for sweet cuisine, while the significance of spiciness as a risk factor diminishes in regions where it is commonly preferred. Our findings emphasize the role of subjective taste preferences in protecting cognitive function and highlight regional variations. Target strategies should focus on assisting individuals with CMD to reduce excessive sweetness intake and simultaneously receiving treatment for CMD to safeguard cognitive function.

Fabrication strategies for chiral self-assembly surface

Chiral self-assembly is the spontaneous organization of individual building blocks from chiral (bio)molecules to macroscopic objects into ordered superstructures. Chiral self-assembly is ubiquitous in nature, such as DNA and proteins, which formed the foundation of biological structures. In addition to chiral (bio) molecules, chiral ordered superstructures constructed by self-assembly have also attracted much attention. Chiral self-assembly usually refers to the process of forming chiral aggregates in an ordered arrangement under various non-covalent bonding such as H-bond, π-π interactions, van der Waals forces (dipole-dipole, electrostatic effects, etc.), and hydrophobic interactions. Chiral assembly involves the spontaneous process, which followed the minimum energy rule. It is essentially an intermolecular interaction force. Self-assembled chiral materials based on chiral recognition in electrochemistry, chiral catalysis, optical sensing, chiral separation, etc. have a broad application potential with the research development of chiral materials in recent years.

Influence of the sociocultural perspective on the sensory perception of wine consumers in Mexico and Spain

The increasing globalization of companies and markets, including the wine market, makes this study important as a cultural comparison between the sensory perception of wine in Mexico and Spain. Eighty consumers were selected with different consumption habits, and hedonic (Acceptance and Simple Preference) and descriptive (Word Association Task and the Check-All-That-Apply (CATA) method) sensory tests were performed. The results revealed that there were differences in the conceptualization of wine in the Word Association Task. Both populations preferred wines of Spanish origin over those of Mexican origin, especially in the case of red wine. Finally, the results of the CATA method showed that the attributes that discriminate the two types of wine are due more to the country origin of the tasters than to the samples. Spanish consumers used cultural and tradition descriptors and were stricter when it came to sensory evaluation. Moreover, Spanish participants demonstrated more ability to differentiating all wines in terms of visual, olfactory and taste aspects.

Typical diet and type of economy do not predict food-sharing behaviors in three Tanzanian societies

Food sharing behavior is a widely observed phenomenon, and it draws attention of scholars interested in finding both proximate and ultimate explanations of such practices. In the current study, we focused on possible socio-economic and environmental food-sharing predictors: type of economy (i.e., immediate-return vs. delayed-return) and typical diet composition (i.e., proportion of proteins and carbohydrates in typical daily caloric intake). We investigated whether members of three societies from Tanzania (N = 177), namely hunter-gatherers (Hadza), pastoralists (Datoga), and agriculturalists (Iraqw) differ with regard to food-sharing patterns in the Dictator Game and reactions to violations of the food-sharing norms in the Ultimatum Game. We found that neither the type of economy nor the typical diet influenced our outcomes. The results indicated, however, that food sharing behavior was positively predicted by certain individual-level characteristics: people of higher strength and lower body fat shared more food, and women were more willing to share food than men.

Postpartum Maternal Mood Among Hadza Foragers of Tanzania: A Mixed Methods Approach

Infant and maternal mortality rates are among the highest in the world in low and middle-income countries where postpartum depression impacts at least one in five women. Currently, there is a dearth of data on maternal mood and infant health outcomes in small-scale non-industrial populations from such countries, particularly during the postnatal period. Here, we present the first investigation of postpartum maternal mood among a foraging population, the Hadza of Tanzania. We administered the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) to twenty-three women, all with infants under the age of 12 months. Semi-structured interviews on happiness and unhappiness during the post-partum period served as a validity cross-check for the EPDS. The combined results of the EPDS surveys and the interview responses suggest that a high proportion of Hadza women experience significant mood disturbances following birth and that postpartum unhappiness is associated with self-reports of pain, anxiety, and disturbed sleep patterns. These findings suggest that many of the mothers in our sample are experiencing post-partum unhappiness at levels similar to or higher than those reported for low to middle income countries in general, including Tanzania. These data are critical for improving our understanding of the etiologies of postpartum mood disturbances cross-culturally.

Determinants of Sweetness Preference: A Scoping Review of Human Studies

Factors associated with sweetness preference are multi-faceted and incredibly complex. A scoping review was undertaken to identify determinants of sweetness preference in humans. Using an online search tool, ProQuest ™, a total of 99 publications were identified and subsequently grouped into the following categories of determinants: Age, dietary factors, reproductive hormonal factors, body weight status, heritable, weight loss, sound, personality, ethnicity and lifestyle, previous exposure, disease, and 'other' determinants. Methodologies amongst studies were heterogenous in nature (e.g., there was variability across studies in the sweetness concentrations tested, the number of different sweetness concentrations used to assess sweetness preference, and the methods utilized to measure sweetness preference), rendering interpretation of overall findings challenging; however, for certain determinants, the evidence appeared to support predictive capacity of greater sweetness preference, such as age during certain life-stages (i.e., young and old), being in a hungry versus satiated state, and heritable factors (e.g., similar sweetness preferences amongst family members). Recommendations for the design of future studies on sweetness preference determinants are provided herein, including an "investigator checklist" of criteria to consider.

Potential effects of umami ingredients on human health: Pros and cons

Umami taste is the most recent confirmed basic taste in addition to sour, sweet, bitter, and salty. It has been controversial because of its effects on human nutritional benefit. Based on the available literatures, this review categorized 13 positive and negative effects of umami taste on human health. On the positive side, umami taste can improve food flavor and consumption, improve nutrition intake of the elderly and patients, protect against duodenal cancer, reduce ingestion of sodium chloride, decrease consumption of fat, and improve oral functions. On the other hand, umami taste can also induce hepatotoxicity, cause asthma, induce migraine headaches, damage the nervous system, and promote obesity. Due to its novelty, there are many functions and effects of umami taste waiting to be discovered. With further investigation, more information regarding the effects of umami taste on human health will be discerned.

Quantifying the relationship between food sharing practices and socio-ecological variables in small-scale societies: A cross-cultural multi-methodological approach

This article presents a cross-cultural study of the relationship among the subsistence strategies, the environmental setting and the food sharing practices of 22 modern small-scale societies located in America (n = 18) and Siberia (n = 4). Ecological, geographical and economic variables of these societies were extracted from specialized literature and the publicly available D-PLACE database. The approach proposed comprises a variety of quantitative methods, ranging from exploratory techniques aimed at capturing relationships of any type between variables, to network theory and supervised-learning predictive modelling. Results provided by all techniques consistently show that the differences observed in food sharing practices across the sampled populations cannot be explained just by the differential distribution of ecological, geographical and economic variables. Food sharing has to be interpreted as a more complex cultural phenomenon, whose variation over time and space cannot be ascribed only to local adaptation.

Consumers' Perceptions and Preferences for Bitterness in Vegetable Foods: The Case of Extra-Virgin Olive Oil and Brassicaceae-A Narrative Review

The presence of some healthy phytochemicals in food can be paired with high bitterness, and consumers have a widespread avoidance toward bitter-tasting food. This causes a gap between preferences and healthy needs of consumers. Therefore, this review collected insights from literature belonging to different discipline domains in order to have a broad view of the current state-of-the-art about biochemical aspects and consumers’ perceptions and preferences toward foods with an enhanced bitter taste. In detail, we focused on two core products of the Mediterranean diet: Extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO) and Brassicaceae, both characterized by specific phytochemicals having strong healthy properties and bitter-pungent taste. Results suggested that, although bitter taste is a general driver of dislike, some exceptions can be represented by: niches of consumers (e.g., innovators and organic buyers), foods consumed with specific purposes (e.g., coffee, chocolate, and alcoholic beverages). The level of bitterness perceived by the consumers can be modulated through exposure, information on benefits, and elements within the environment (e.g., music). Thus, these insights can be used to develop specific campaigns aimed at promoting bitter (healthy) food, considering also the key role that could be played by food pairings.

Are (All) Consumers Averse to Bitter Taste?

The current study combined hedonic liking with non-hypothetical experimental auctions to measure consumer preferences for bitter tasting food and identify individual socio-demographic and psychographic characteristics that influence bitter aversion. Furthermore, the research analyzed whether consumer preferences for bitter food were influenced by sensory and health-related information. Findings reveal that respondents (N = 205) are not averse to bitter taste; while, socio-demographic traits influence bitter acceptance, as higher education level and gender (female) positively affect preferences, together with specific individual characteristics as high compensatory health beliefs. Moreover, results prove that participants positively respond to health-related information, whereas information on bitterness-taste generates lower preferences.

Food Perceptions and Dietary Changes for Chronic Condition Management in Rural Peru: Insights for Health Promotion

Peru is undergoing a nutrition transition and, at the country level, it faces a double burden of disease where several different conditions require dietary changes to maintain a healthy life and prevent complications. Through semistructured interviews in rural Peru with people affected by three infectious and noninfectious chronic conditions (type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and neurocysticercosis), their relatives, and focus group discussions with community members, we analyzed their perspectives on the value of food and the challenges of dietary changes due to medical diagnosis. The findings show the various ways in which people from rural northern Peru conceptualize good (buena alimentación) and bad (mala alimentación) food, and that food choices are based on life-long learning, experience, exposure, and availability. In the context of poverty, required changes are not only related to what people recognize as healthy food, such as fruits and vegetables, but also of work, family, trust, taste, as well as affordability and accessibility of foods. In this paper we discuss the complexity of introducing dietary changes in poor rural communities whose perspectives on food are poorly understood and rarely taken into consideration by health professionals when promoting behavior change.