Endocrine Abstracts

Objective: Craving of sweet foods and sucrose may be a big obstacle for glycemic control of diabetic patients. It is generally believed that diabetic patients may prefer sweet taste. However, few studies have examined sucrose preference in diabetic patients. Therefore, we investigated changes in sucrose preference in diabetic condition.

Research design and methods: We performed two-alternative staircase methods and forced-choice tracking procedures to assess sucrose thresholds and preferences, respectively in 172 type 2 diabetic patients and 104 age and sex-matched controls. To examine if glycemic control state may affect sucrose preference and sensitivity, 88 diabetic patients underwent follow-up test in 3 months later. To test the emotional effect of sweet taste in diabetic patients, we also performed sucrose preference test in streptozocin-induced diabetic rats.

Results: Unexpectedly, diabetic patients liked a lower concentration for sucrose compared to non-diabetic subjects (most palatable sucrose concentration: diabetic 0.32±0.02 M vs non-diabetic 0.40±0.02 M, P=0.001). Similarly, streptozocin-induced diabetic rats had reduced preference for sucrose compared to normal rats, suggesting that diabetes itself may reduce sucrose preference. Meanwhile, sucrose detection threshold was elevated in diabetic patients (sucrose concentrations detectible sweet taste: diabetic 21.2±1.0 vs non-diabetic 16.2±1.0, P<0.001), indicating that diabetic patients taste sweet less effectively. Both the preference and sensitivity for sucrose were not affected by glycemic control status in follow-up tests.

Conclusions: Diabetic patients and rodents showed lower sucrose preference. The preference and sensitivity for sucrose were independent of changes in blood glucose levels.

Declaration of interest: The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest that could be perceived as prejudicing the impartiality of the research project.

Funding: This research did not receive any specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sector.