Research Article
Comparisons of 6-n-Propylthiouracil (PROP) Sensitivity, Food Liking and Food Intake between Vegetarian and Non-Vegetarian Women
| Sung Eun Choi* | |
| Department of Family, Nutrition and Exercise Sciences, Queens College, the City University of New York (CUNY), Flushing NY, USA | |
| Corresponding Author : | Sung Eun Choi, PhD RD, Department of Family, Nutrition and Exercise Sciences Queens College, CUNY Remsen Hall 305 A 65-30 Kissena Boulevard Flushing NY, 11367-1597, USA Tel: 1-718-997-4169 Fax: 1-718-997-4163 E-mail: sungeun.choi@qc.cuny.edu |
| Received March 16, 2015; Accepted April 4, 2015; Published April 25, 2015 | |
| Citation: Choi SE (2015) Comparisons of 6-N-Propylthiouracil (PROP) Sensitivity, Food Liking and Food Intake between Vegetarian and Non-Vegetarian Women. J Obes Weight Loss Ther 5:255. doi:10.4172/2165-7904.1000255 | |
| Copyright: © 2015 Choi SE. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. | |
Abstract
Background: Previous studies have suggested that vegetarians have a lower risk of overweight and obesity than do non-vegetarians. However, little is known about how meat consumption interacts with taste perception, thereby influencing food intake and body weight. Objective: The objective of this study was to examine the relationship of meat consumption with 6-npropylthiouracil (PROP) sensitivity, food liking, food intake and body mass index in female long term vegetarians and non-vegetarians. Methods: A cross-sectional design with a total of 94 racially diverse female subjects (mean age 23 years, 42 vegetarians, 52 non-vegetarians) living in the New York City area was used in this study. Body Mass Index (BMI) was calculated using the measured weight and height and PROP sensitivity was assessed using a PROP filter paper disk method and a general Labeled Magnitude Scale (gLMS). The subjects also completed a questionnaire to report the food liking/disliking for 19 food items using a hedonic version of the gLMS. Dietary intake was assessed using a food frequency questionnaire. Results: The PROP sensitivity of vegetarians was significantly higher than that of non-vegetarians. Vegetarians showed significantly less liking of fat foods than did non-vegetarians, whereas there was no significant difference in sweet foods liking. The BMI, energy, protein, fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, B vitamins, iron, zinc, sodium, potassium, and alcohol intake values of the vegetarians were significantly lower than those of the non-vegetarians. Multiple regression results revealed that only vegetarian status significantly contributed to the predictions of all the dependent variables, energy intake, fat intake and BMI. Conclusion: The study findings suggest that a difference in taste perception between vegetarians and nonvegetarians may play a role in determining energy intake and weight status. Further studies are needed to examine the mechanisms by which habitual meat consumption affect taste perception and thus food intake.
