(PO28-31-22) Study Protocol: Sensory Effects of Replacing Sugar Sweetened Sodas With Unsweetened, Flavored Sparkling Water

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Presenting Author(s)

Vinicius (Vinnie) M. Valicente, BE
– PhD Student, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana, United States

Co-Author(s)

Nana Gletsu Miller, PhD
– Associate Professor, Indiana University School of Public Health, Bloomignton, Indiana, United States
CR

Cordelia A. Running, MSc, PhD
– Assistant Professor, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana, United States

Disclosure(s):

Vinicius (Vinnie) M. Valicente, BE: No relevant financial relationship(s) with ineligible companies to disclose.

Cordelia A. Running, MSc, PhD: No relevant financial relationship(s) with ineligible companies to disclose.

Objectives: Excess sugar consumption contributes to numerous chronic diseases. Prior work has typically emphasized replacing sugar-sweetened beverages, a key source of excess dietary sugar, with low-calorie sweetened beverages. Our protocol aims to instead replace sugar sodas with unsweetened, flavored sparkling water products, which are available in the same containers and at comparable prices to sugary sodas.

Methods: Participants who consume at least 2 sugar-sweetened sodas per day are being recruited for this project. Flavored, unsweetened sparkling waters will be provided to participants for 2 weeks, with sensory evaluations at baseline, 1 week, and 2 weeks. At the end of the 2-week intervention, we will provide participants with information on the costs and how to find the flavored, unsweetened sparkling water products. Two weeks post intervention, participants will be asked whether they continued to consume the sparkling waters or if they reverted back to sugar-sweetened soda consumption. We will use linear mixed models with subject as a repeated measure to determine the effect of replacement of sugar-sweetened sodas beverages with sparkling waters on: liking of sweetness in soda-like beverages, “just about right” concentration of sugar/intensity of sweetness in soda-like beverages, and post-intervention beverage selection.

Results: As this is a protocol abstract, results have yet to be obtained. However, we hypothesize that participants who comply with substituting sparkling waters for sweetened sodas will exhibit sensory shifts to prefer lower concentrations of sugar and liking for lower sweetness intensity in beverages. We expect these participants will also report continuing to consume the sparkling water products at 2 weeks post intervention.

Conclusions: Data from this study will inform future work on whether commercially available water products could shift sensory preferences for sweetness, which could aid in interventions to curb added sugar intake.

Funding Sources: This study is supported by a Pilot and Feasibility Award within the Indiana CTSI/CDMD, an initiative funded by the NIH/NIDDK.