The Influence of Sweet Taste Perception on Dietary Intake in Relation to Dental Caries and BMI in Saudi Arabian Schoolchildren

OBJECTIVES The aim of the study was to evaluate the influence of sweet taste perception on dietary habits in Saudi schoolchildren. In addition, the relationship between dietary habits and both caries and BMI was studied. METHODS A cross-sectional observational study comprising 225 schoolchildren aged 13-15 years from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, was conducted. The consumption frequency of certain food items was analysed from a beverage and snack questionnaire and a three-day estimated dietary record was obtained. The sweet taste perception level was determined as sweet taste threshold (TT) and sweet taste preference (TP). Children were grouped into low, medium, and high, according to their sweet taste perception level. ICDAS and DMFS indices were used for caries registration and anthropometric measurements using BMI were collected. RESULTS Sweet taste perception was found to be negatively correlated to the number of main meals and positively correlated to both snack and sweet intake occasions. Statistically significant differences were found between the TT and TP groups with regard to the number of main meals and sweet intake (p ≤ 0.01). No significant correlation between the dietary variables and caries or BMI was found. CONCLUSIONS The dietary habits and sweet intake were found to be influenced by the sweet taste perception level, while the relation between the dietary habits and the caries and BMI was found insignificant.