In Australia, a Deakin University study has shown that carbohydrates have a perceivable taste quality and taste sensitivity to carbohydrates increases intakes of energy and carbohydrates, leading to a larger waist measurement. The researchers looked at two carbohydrates, maltodextrin and oligofructose, both found in common foods like bread, pasta and rice.
Initial testing by Dr Julia Low, an academic in Deakin’s School of Exercise and Nutrition Sciences, showed that these carbohydrates could be sensed in the mouth. “Those who were most sensitive to the carbohydrate taste ate more of these foods and had a larger waist,” Dr Low said.
Professor Russell Keast said carbohydrates had long been assumed invisible to taste. “It is typically sugar, with its hedonically pleasing sweet taste, that is the most sought after carbohydrate,” he said. “But our research has shown that there is a perceivable taste quality elicited by other carbohydrates independent of sweet taste.”