2015 Fiscal Year Final Research Report
Characteristics of flavor learning in infants and its importance in food preference behavior
| Project/Area Number |
25350165
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| Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
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| Allocation Type | Multi-year Fund |
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| Section | 一般 |
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| Research Field |
Eating habits
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| Research Institution | Kio University |
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Principal Investigator |
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| Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha) |
UEJI Kayoko 畿央大学, 健康科学部, 教授 (50390208)
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| Project Period (FY) |
2013-04-01 – 2016-03-31
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| Keywords | 離乳期 / フレーバー / 味覚 / 嗅覚 / うま味 / 嗜好学習 / 記憶 |
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| Outline of Final Research Achievements |
Umami-rich foods are often accompanied by characteristic odors. Early experience to these foods may be needed to get used to them. To address this notion scientifically, weanling rats were used for the conditioned flavor preference (CFP) paradigm. In the acquisition session, they consumed water with a flavor (cherry or grape) and either one of the umami substances (0.05M MSG, 0.01M IMP or a mixture of 0.05M MSG and 0.01M IMP) with another flavor (grape or cherry). The weanling rats failed to acquire flavor preferences when either MSG or IMP was paired. When the mixture was used, they acquired CFPs which maintained to adulthood at the age of 20 weeks. Synergistically increased umami taste may be responsible for this long-lasting CFP. The present findings may be applicable to humans such that early exposure to foods with synergy of umami is important in later preferences for flavors of the umami-rich foods.
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| Free Research Field |
食行動
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