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Sullivan
How children acquire preferences for added sugar and salt was examined by investigating the effects
of repeated exposure to 1 of 3 versions of a novel food (sweetened, salty, or plain tofu) on children's
preference for those and other similar foods. Participants were 39 4- and 5-year-olds assigned to taste
only 1 of the 3 flavored versions 15 times over several weeks. Preferences for all versions were ob-
tained before, during, and after the exposure series. Preference increased for the exposed version
This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly.
only. Experience with 1 flavored version did not produce generalized liking for all 3 versions of the
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.
food. Experience with 1 version (flavored or plain) actually produced a decline in preference for the
other version. This was true whether children had experience with plain orflavoredversions of the
food. The acquired preference was restricted to the particular food/flavor complex; through expo-
sure, children seemed to learn whether it was appropriate to add salt or sugar to a particular food.
Concern regarding the high levels of consumption of sugar preferences for this food and for similar foods with and without
and salt by Americans has led to recent dietary recommenda- the added sugar or salt.
tions to decrease intake of these two substances. Excessive salt Several studies with adult subjects have revealed that a reduc-
intake is of concern because it is associated with hypertension, tion or an increase in total dietary sodium intake over a period
at least among susceptible individuals (Dahl, 1972; U.S. De- of weeks or months can alter the individual's preferred level of
partment of Health and Human Services [DHHS], 1988). The salt in familiar foods. The consumption of a diet low in sodium
current recommendation is to reduce sodium intake to 1,100- led to increased preference for less salty preparations and to
3,300 mg (National Academy of Science, 1980); on average, decreased preference for salty foods (Blais et al., 1986). When
current intakes are 2,300-6,900 mg (Dahl, 1972). Recent con- a diet with a level of salt higher than baseline is consumed,
cern over the high levels of consumption of refined and pro- adults show an increased preference for higher levels of salt in
cessed sugars has led to a suggested decrease in intake of refined food (Bertino, Beauchamp, & Engleman, 1986). These results
sugars to nearly one half of the current level (U.S. Senate, 1977; are consistent with the hypothesis that the preferred level of
DHHS, 1988). Research on the etiology of preferences for levels salt in a familiar food is directly influenced by prior dietary
of added sugar and salt in foods could aid in implementing these experience. However, this research does not provide informa-
guidelines. tion on how these preferred levels are acquired initially. A re-
Food andflavorpreferences are major determinants of con- lated question that remains unanswered by the existing studies
sumption patterns, particularly during childhood, when factors is whether acquired preferences for particular levels of sugar or
salt are specific to particular familiar foods or will lead to a
such as cost, availability, and ease of preparation are not yet
sweet or a salty tooth (i.e., a generalized liking for sweet or salty
salient. Excessive consumption of sugar and salt is at least in
tastes across many foods).
part a result of preferences for high levels of these tastes in
foods. Individual differences in such preferences are attribut- There is some evidence that there may be a developmental
able in large part to differences in experiential history. A num- shift in the specificity of preferences for sweet and salty tastes
ber of acquisition processes have been implicated in the devel- (see also Beauchamp & Cowart, 1990; Harris, Thomas, &
opment of food preferences: mere exposure (Birch & Marlin, Booth, 1990). However, it is important to note that this does
1982; Pliner, 1982), social learning (Birch, 1980; Michela & not mean that the developmental patterns in the acceptance of
Contento, 1986), and associative conditioning (Birch, Zimmer- sweet and salty tastes are the same (Beauchamp & Cowart,
man, & Hind, 1980; Zellner, Rozin, Aron, & Kulish, 1983). 1985; Desor, Mailer, & Turner, 1973). Although the preference
Previous research has indicated that repeated exposure to ini- for the sweet taste seems to be innate, evidence suggests that
tially novel foods andflavorstends to lead to enhanced prefer- the perceptual system in humans for detecting salt continues
ences. The research reported in the present article deals with to develop postnatally (Beauchamp, Cowart, & Moran, 1986).
how repeated experience with an initially novel food, served Preferences for both sweet and salty tastes are soon modified by
either plain or with added sugar or salt, influenced children's experience, and preferences seem to become increasingly con-
text specific in both cases. It is our view that repeated experi-
ence with a food with the sweet or salty taste added causes that
particular preparation of the food to become familiar, accepted,
and appropriate. For example, although very young infants
Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Leann
L. Birch, School of Human Resources and Family Studies, 1105 West
show a preference for sweetened water, this preference was only
Nevada Street, Urbana, Illinois 61801. maintained several months later among infants whose mothers
546
SPECIAL SECTION: EXPERIENCE AND PREFERENCE 547
continued to feed them sweetened water during this time, and exposed to a plain version of the novel food without added sugar or salt.
their preference for sweetened water was not related to their The mean age of these 8 boys and 6 girls was 59.4 months.
preferred level of sweetness in fruit drinks (Beauchamp & Cow-
art, 1985). Materials
Infants are initially indifferent to salty tastes, and they begin
to preferentially ingest salty water at about 4 months. However, Three initially novel foods were chosen as contexts for the added
although infants will prefer salted water to plain water, by the sugar and salt because of their similarity in physical appearance, tex-
time they are between 2 and 3 years of age, they have acquired ture, and neutrality of flavor; they were tofu (Azumaya), ricotta cheese
the adultlike rejection of salt water. At about the same age, chil- (Sargento, 25-mg/oz), and jicama. Food history data obtained from the
parents of the children confirmed that these foods were novel to the
dren prefer salted soup to unsalted soup. Harris and Booth
children.
(1985) reported that for 6-month-old infants, preference for
The amount of salt and sugar (sucrose) added to the foods was deter-
salted cereal was directly related to the child's intake of sodium mined on the basis of the results of pilot work with an adult sample. On
from all food sources during the previous week; the preference the basis of the pilot data, one level of saltiness and one level of sweetness
for salty cereal was not dependent on specific experience with was selected that was palatable for each of the foods yet was distinctly
This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly.
salted cereal. However, the evidence presented in this volume salty or sweet in taste. The levels of salt and sucrose added differed for
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.
suggests that prior experience may have much more specific the three food stimuli because of differences in the intrinsic sweetness
effects on preference for foods later in infancy and early child- and saltiness of the three foods. Through variation of the ratios of fla-
hood. Taken together, thesefindingssuggest that the preference vorant to food, an attempt was made to match the perceived level of
for the sweet or salty taste is becoming increasingly focused and sweetness and saltiness across the foods. Those levels included salty tofu
context specific. Children are learning through repeated experi- prepared with 2 g NaCl (salt)/100 g tofu, and sweetened tofu with 14 g
sucrose (sugar)/100 g tofu; salty ricotta cheese prepared with 1.6 g
ence which foods provide appropriate contexts for sweet and
NaCl/100 g ricotta cheese, and sweetened ricotta with 12 g sucrose/100
salty tastes. g ricotta cheese; and salty jicama prepared with 1.6 g NaCl/100 g
The purpose of the present experiment was to explore the jicama, and sweetened jicama with 12.5 g sucrose/100 g jicama.
role of experience with a novel food, eaten either sweetened, In an attempt to match the textural characteristics of the tofu and
salty, or plain, on the development of a preference for those the ricotta cheese, the foods were processed to a smooth consistency,
three versions of that food. Cowart and Beauchamp (1986) sug- incorporating the added sugar or salt. The foods in the plain version
gested that what becomes familiar with repeated experience is were also processed to match the consistency of the flavored stimuli.
the context for the sweet or salty taste. We predicted that re- The tofu was first drained, rinsed, and then blotted to remove excess
peated experience with eating one version of the food would moisture. This procedure enabled the consistency of the tofu to match
nearly identically that of the ricotta cheese.
be very specific to that preparation and would not produce a
Jicama was prepared to match the tofu in appearance (color) and
generalized enhanced liking for all three versions of the exposed
neutrality offlavoronly. This food stimulus was shredded in a food
food. We also hypothesized that it is the a X b interactive com- processor then thoroughly blended with the added flavorant while main-
plex of the food and the sweet or salty taste that becomes famil- taining afinelyshredded texture.
iar and liked with repeated exposure, not some simple additive To maintain freshness, all of the foods were purchased the same week
combination of the food and the flavor. We proposed to test this they were to be consumed and were stored at 6.5 °C. Preparation was
hypothesis by also looking for generalization of mere exposure done no more than 36 hr before use. The 1 -tsp food samples were always
effects on preference for other versions of the same food and on presented to the children in separate 4-oz clear plastic cups.
preference for other, similar novel foods prepared with the same
flavors added. Only the specific food/taste complex would be-
come familiar and preferred with repeated exposure, and no
Procedure
generalization was expected: Neither another version of the The children had repeated exposure to one of the three versions of
same food nor another food with the same added taste would tofu. Each exposure involved taking a small taste, which was typically
become more preferred as a result of experience with the com- swallowed. To assess the effects of this exposure, preference was mea-
plex. sured at several points before, during, and after the exposure period.
Training period. Prior to the beginning of the exposure period, the
children were familiarized with the tasting procedure. During this time
Method the children were asked to taste small samples of familiar foods. The
procedures used in training were the same as those used throughout
Subjects the study. Children had also been trained in the preference assessment
procedure (discussed later) as part of another study.
Participants in the study were 39 preschool children, 21 boys and 18 Preexposure assessment. To evaluate changes in preference resulting
girls. The children ranged in age from 44 months to 71 months, with a from increased exposure, we assessed preferences for the test foods be-
mean age of 55 months. The children had repeated experience with only fore the exposure series began. First, an assessment was made of the
one of three initially novel food preparations: tofu, either with added initial preferences of six foods, including all three versions of both tofu
salt or sugar or plain, without added sugar or salt. The three exposure and ricotta cheese. In the preference assessment procedure each child
groups were balanced for sex and initial group mean preference for the was interviewed individually by a familiar adult. Each child took one
foods and were randomly assigned to experience one of the three ver- food sample at a time from a tray containing all six foods and tasted it
sions. The 11 children exposed to the salty version of the novel food with a small spoon. The child then placed the cup containing the re-
were 5 boys and 6 girls with a mean age of 54.4 months. The 14 children mainder of the sample in front of one of three faces: a smiling face
exposed to the sweet version of the novel food included 8 boys and 6 signifying like, a neutral face signifying just okay, and the third face,
girls with a mean age of 55.7 months. A third group of 14 children were signifying dislike. Within each category, the child then ranked the foods
548 SUSAN A. SULLIVAN AND LEANN L. BIRCH
from most liked to most disliked. These data formed the basis for the more 1 -
analyses. Such data have been shown to be reliable and valid predictors
of children's consumption in a self-selection setting (Birch, 1979).
Exposure period. Experience with the novel food-flavor combina-
tion was provided during the exposure period. Each child tasted one of
the threeflavoredversions of the tofu twice per week for 9 weeks, for a
total of 15 exposures. The children tasted the foods in the preschool
classroom during their free-play period. A special area, blocked from
direct view of the rest of the room, was reserved for the "tasting game"
on days the tasting was to occur.
Prompts to encourage the child to taste the sample, although usually
not necessary, involved simply telling the child to "take a taste." An
exposure, or tasting, was recorded as touching the food to the tongue or
placing the food in the mouth and either swallowing or spitting out.
Throughout the experiment, the adults refrained from commenting in
This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly.
any positive or negative manner about the food or the situation. less 6
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.
5 -
less
8 8 + 15
less one week
exposure frequency
This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly.
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.
Exposure Frequency Figure 4. Mean ricotta cheese preference for sweetened, salty, and plain
versions of ricotta, data from all subjects combined.
Figure 2. Mean tofu preference for exposed flavor version (sweetened
or salty) versus plain,flavorexposed groups only (sweet and salt).
3.54, p < .05, was significant, whereas that for flavor was not.
The initial difference between the preference means for the
Exposure to plain version. A preliminary examination of the plain and flavored versions was not significant, i(13) = -1.29,
data for this group of children revealed a pattern similar in gen- p = .22, whereas the difference following exposure was signifi-
eral form to that observed for the sweet and salty groups. The cant, i(13) = -3.20, p < .01.
preference rankings of the plain exposure group for both fla- As exposure to the plain tofu increased, preference also in-
vored versions were collapsed, yielding two variables, plain and creased. Although the main effect of exposure in a one-way AN-
flavored (sweetened combined with salty). The preference data OVA did not reach significance, F\7>, 39) = 1.78, p = .17, the
for the children exposed to plain tofu are shown in Figure 3. difference between assessments of preference made after 8 and
Again, although preference for the exposed version increased, 15 exposures was significant, f\\, 13) = 6.79, p < .05. In con-
their preference for the flavored versions declined, providing trast, exposure to the plain version decreased preference for the
strong evidence against generalization. flavored versions of the same novel food. Although the main
A 4 X 2 (Exposure Level X Flavor Version) repeated mea- effect of exposure in the one-way ANOVA only approached sig-
sures ANOVA was performed, comparing the change in prefer- nificance, F{3, 39) = 2.27, p < .10, changes in preference be-
ence of the plain exposed group for the plain version with the tween specific preference assessments were significant. For the
same group's change in preference for theflavoredversions. The flavored versions, the decrease in preference after 15 exposures
interaction between exposure and flavor was again significant, from the assessed preference following 8 exposures was signifi-
Fif>, 78) = 4.18, p<. 001, indicating again that the direction of cant, F( 1,13) = 7.18, p < .05, as was the decrease from 8 expo-
preference change differed for the plain and flavored versions. sures, with a one-week delay, to following 15 exposures, F{1,
Although this interaction makes the interpretation of main 13) = 8.55, p< .01. The overall pattern of results was therefore
effects problematic, the main effect of exposure, F\3, 39) = similar for all exposure groups, whether they were exposed to
the plain or flavored versions: Preference for the exposed ver-
sion increased with exposure, whereas preference for the unfa-
miliarflavoredversions actually declined.
Plain
Effect of exposure to one food on preference for another food.
Flavored
The effect of exposure to one novel food with a particular added
flavor on the preference for another similar novel food was ex-
amined. The results of a 4 X 3 (Exposure Level X Flavor Ver-
sion) repeated measures ANOVA indicated a significant main
effect of flavor for the three versions of ricotta cheese (sweet,
salty, and plain), 7=1(2, 72) = 11.97, p < .0001, for all groups
combined. However, neither the main effect of exposure group,
F(2, 36) = 0.34, p = .71, nor the main effect of exposure, F(3,
108) = 0.48, p = .70, were significant. The results, shown in
less 6 Figure 4, indicated that regardless of how much exposure the
8 8+
one week
children had to tofu or whether the tofu was sweet, salty, or
Exposure Frequency plain, it had no effect on preference for ricotta: Sweetened ri-
cotta cheese was preferred over salted ricotta cheese, F( 1,38) =
Figure 3. Mean tofu preference for plain versus combined 6.33, p < .02, which in turn was preferred over plain ricotta
flavor versions, plain exposed group only. cheese, 7^1, 38) = 6.02, p < .02.
550 SUSAN A. SULLIVAN AND LEANN L. BIRCH
To determine whether the effects of exposure to a flavored preferred at the end of the exposure series than it was when it
version of one novel food would generalize to another com- was completely novel. This unexpected result was noted sepa-
pletely novel food, afinalassessment was made. A single prefer- rately both in the data of the children exposed to sweet or salty
ence assessment including tofu and jicama was administered to tofu and in the data of the children exposed to plain tofu.
22 subjects. No child had any prior experience with jicama. All The absence of generalization of enhanced preference is at
of the children preferred the now-familiar tofu to the corre- least consistent with Kalat and Rozin's (1973) idea that food
sponding version ofjicama, t(21) = —4.15, p < .0005. The sweet neophobia has an adaptive function: It protects the organism
version of jicama was the most preferred of the various flavors from ingesting novel and potentially toxic substances. Exposure
of jicama for all of the subjects combined, and sweetened tofu that is not followed by negative physiological consequences re-
was significantly preferred to sweetened jicama, t{21) = -4.31, sults in "learned safety" and enhanced acceptance. This inter-
p < .0005. However, the flavor of jicama that corresponded to pretation of mere exposure effects implies that such exposure
the child's exposed version of tofu was not preferred to the other effects should be specific to foods actually ingested and should
version ofjicama, /(14) = -0.49, p < .65. There was no evidence not generalize to other similar but untried and potentially dan-
that experience with oneflavoredversion of a novel food pro- gerous substances. However, this interpretation does not ac-
This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly.
duced a generalized preference for another, similarly flavored count for the observed decreases in preference we noted for the
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.
tance to another novel food with the same flavor added. This R. J., & Laing, B. (1986). Effect of dietary sodium restriction on taste
finding fails to provide any support for the suggestion that a responses to sodium chloride: A longitudinal study. American Jour-
sweet or salty tooth might be the result of a generalized prefer- nal ofClinical Nutrition, 44, lil-lAi.
Cowart, B. J., & Beauchamp, G. K. (1986). Factors affecting acceptance
ence for sweetened or salty food based on extensive experience
of salt by human infants and children. In M. R. Kare & J. G. Brand
with one or few sweetened or salty foods. (Eds.), Interaction of the chemical senses with nutrition (pp. 25-44).
New York: Academic Press.
Dahl, L. K. (1972). Salt and hypertension. American Journal ofClinical
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Blais, C. A., Pangbora, R. M., Borhani, N. O., Ferrell, M. F, Prineas, Accepted October 5,1989 •