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Published on: January 29, 2017
Sweet taste preference as a risk factor for alcohol dependence
H R Kranzler1, K A Sandstrom, J Van Kirk
1Alcohol Research Center, Department of Psychiatry, University of Connecticut School of Medicine, Farmington, CT 06030-2103, USA. kranzler@psychiatry.uchc.edu
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.
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