Sweet Taste Preference as a Risk Factor for Alcohol Dependence

• Published in: The American journal of psychiatry Vol. 158; no. 5; pp. 813 - 815
• Main Authors: Kranzler, Henry R., Sandstrom, Kristen A., Van Kirk, Jeffrey
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Washington, DC American Psychiatric Publishing 01.05.2001; American Psychiatric Association
• Subjects: Addictive behaviors; Adult; Adult and adolescent clinical studies; Alcohol Drinking - epidemiology; Alcohol Drinking - genetics; Alcohol Drinking - psychology; Alcoholism; Alcoholism - diagnosis; Alcoholism - epidemiology; Alcoholism - genetics; Biological and medical sciences; Biological markers; Child; Child of Impaired Parents - psychology; Discrimination (Psychology) - physiology; Female; Genetic Markers; Genetic Predisposition to Disease; Health risk assessment; Humans; Male; Medical sciences; Olfactory perception; Phenotype; Preferences; Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Risk Factors; Sucrose; Sweetness; Taste; Taste - physiology; Human; Healthy subject; Family study; Alcoholism; Sex; Experimental study; Alcoholic beverage; Family story; Preference; Dependence; Risk factor; Sweet taste; Father; Antecedent; Comparative study
• ISSN: 0002-953X; 1535-7228
• DOI: 10.1176/appi.ajp.158.5.813

OBJECTIVE: Previous research has found that alcoholics have a greater preference for sweet solutions than comparison subjects. This study tested the hypothesis that preference for sweet solutions is a marker for alcoholism risk. METHOD: A total of 122 nonalcoholic subjects (59 men) participated. Fifty-eight subjects had a paternal history of alcoholism, and 64 did not. Each subject rated a series of sucrose solutions for intensity of sweetness and degree of preference. RESULTS: Subjects were able to rate accurately the relative intensity of sweetness in the sucrose solutions. Both subjects with and those without a paternal history of alcoholism preferred a 0.42-M sucrose solution, irrespective of gender. CONCLUSIONS: This study failed to support the hypothesis that sweet preference is a marker of alcoholism risk. The sweet preference observed previously among alcoholics may be a consequence of chronic alcohol consumption or other factors associated with heavy drinking.