Effects of a Six-Day Whole-Diet Intervention on Taste Perception and Dietary Behaviour in Young Adults

NCT07726394 | Active Not Recruiting

• 1 other identifier: SunwayU
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 115
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

This study aims to investigate the effects of a specific diet modification on the pleasantness, desire, and saltiness intensities of selected foods and an ad libitum breakfast buffet through a randomized controlled trial with three arms. Participants will be randomized to either increase, decrease, or make no change to their daily intake of foods with a specific taste for six consecutive days, and outcomes will be assessed at two time points, at baseline (Day 1) and after the intervention (Day 7), alongside measures of adherence to the assigned diet. Each participant will receive an instruction to modify specific aspects of their diets for six days. This study is crucial for addressing diet-related health issues such as obesity, diabetes, and hypertension in Malaysia. By providing robust evidence on the effectiveness of specific diet modifications, the study can inform public health policies, improve dietary recommendations tailored to Malaysian cultural preferences, and promote long-term benefits.

Conditions

Sodium Excess; Hypertension; Salty Taste

Keywords

Dietary sodium; Taste adaptation; Taste perception; Sodium intake; Public health nutrition

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (3)

• Pleasantness

  Pleasantness ratings, indicated after tasting three salty foods (Foods 1-3) and three non-salty foods (Foods 4-6), will be measured on a 10-point Likert scale. The rating scores will be averaged across the six test foods to generate composite scores. The aggregated pleasantness score will be used to capture overall taste responses rather than food-specific effects, consistent with whole-diet taste exposure theory.

  Pleasantness ratings will be collected at baseline (Day 1) and Day 7

• Desire to eat

  Desire to eat ratings, indicated after tasting three salty foods (Foods 1-3) and three non-salty foods (Foods 4-6), will be measured on a 10-point Likert scale. The rating scores will be averaged across the six test foods to generate composite scores. The aggregated pleasantness score will be used to capture overall taste responses rather than food-specific effects, consistent with whole-diet taste exposure theory.

  Desire to eat ratings will be collected at baseline (Day 1) and Day 7

• Saltiness intensity

  Saltiness intensity ratings, indicated after tasting three salty foods (Foods 1-3) and three non-salty foods (Foods 4-6), will be measured on a 10-point Likert scale. The rating scores will be averaged across the six test foods to generate composite scores. The aggregated pleasantness score will be used to capture overall taste responses rather than food-specific effects, consistent with whole-diet taste exposure theory.

  Saltiness intensity ratings will be collected at baseline (Day 1) and Day 7

Secondary Outcomes (4)

• Dietary sodium intake

  Dietary sodium intake is estimated at baseline (Day 1) and Day 7

• Sodium Density

  Sodium density will be assessed at baseline (Day 1) and Day 7

• Appetite

  Appetite will be assessed at the baseline (Day 1) and Day 7

• Adherence

  Adherence was assessed only on Day 7

Study Arms (3)

Increase salty food consumption

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants increase intake of salty foods and beverages.

Other: Experimental: Increased Salty Food Intake

Decrease salty food consumption

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants decrease intake of salty foods and beverages.

Other: Experimental: Decrease Salty Food Intake

Maintain usual diet

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

Participants continue their habitual dietary practices

Other: Active Comparator: Maintain Usual Diet

Interventions

Experimental: Decrease Salty Food Intake OTHER

Participants assigned to the decrease group were instructed to reduce their consumption of salty-tasting foods and beverages for six consecutive days (Days 1-6). Participants selected their own foods and beverages while attempting to minimize intake of high-salt items according to written guidance and examples. Outcomes were assessed at baseline (Day 1) and after the intervention (Day 7). A six-day, self-directed dietary intervention designed to reduce exposure to salty foods and beverages under free-living conditions. Participants modified their habitual diet without direct provision of foods by the investigators

Decrease salty food consumption

Active Comparator: Maintain Usual Diet OTHER

Participants assigned to the maintain group were instructed to continue their usual eating habits and dietary practices for six consecutive days without making deliberate changes to salty food consumption. Outcomes were assessed at baseline (Day 1) and after the intervention (Day 7). A six-day control condition in which participants maintained their habitual dietary intake under free-living conditions.

Maintain usual diet

Experimental: Increased Salty Food Intake OTHER

Participants assigned to the increase group were instructed to increase their consumption of salty-tasting foods and beverages for six consecutive days (Days 1-6) while living in their usual environment. Participants selected their own foods and beverages but were encouraged to choose options consistent with a higher-salt dietary pattern. Written guidance and meal examples were provided to support implementation. Outcomes were assessed at baseline (Day 1) and after the intervention (Day 7).

Increase salty food consumption

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years - 35 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64)

You may qualify if:

• Being a student or staff member of Sunway University or Sunway College
• Aged 18-35 years
• Able to communicate in English
• Regularly consuming breakfast
• Being willing and able to comply with all study procedures.

You may not qualify if:

• Vegan/smokers/with chronic medical conditions (e.g., hypertension or diabetes)
• Food allergies
• Pregnant or breastfeeding
• Currently dieting or attempting to lose weight
• History of smell or taste impairment
• Use medications or supplements that could affect taste perception.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Sunway University: lead

Study Sites (1)

Department of Biomedical Sciences, Sir Jeffrey Cheah Sunway Medical School, Faculty of Medical and Life Sciences, Sunway University,.

Subang Jaya, Selangor, 47500, Malaysia

Location

Related Publications (2)

• Mojadadi A, Au A, Ortiz Cerda T, Shao JY, O'Neil T, Bell-Anderson K, Andersen JW, Webb J, Salah W, Ahmad G, Harris HH, Witting PK. Dietary supplementation of male mice with inorganic, organic or nanoparticle selenium preparations: evidence supporting a putative gut-thyroid-male fertility axis. Redox Rep. 2025 Dec;30(1):2495367. doi: 10.1080/13510002.2025.2495367. Epub 2025 Apr 25.

  PMID: 40277453 BACKGROUND

• Bielat AD, Rogers PJ, Appleton KM. Effects of a six-day, whole-diet sweet taste intervention on pleasantness, desire for and intakes of sweet foods: a randomised controlled trial. Br J Nutr. 2025 Jan 28;133(2):277-288. doi: 10.1017/S0007114524003209. Epub 2024 Dec 19.

  PMID: 39698772 BACKGROUND

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Hypernatremia; Hypertension

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Water-Electrolyte Imbalance; Metabolic Diseases; Nutritional and Metabolic Diseases; Vascular Diseases; Cardiovascular Diseases

Study Officials

• Yee-How Say, PhD

  Department of Biomedical Sciences, Sir Jeffrey Cheah Sunway Medical School, Faculty of Medical and Life Sciences, Sunway University, 5, Jalan Universiti, Bandar Sunway, 47500 Subang Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia.

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: DOUBLE
• Who Masked: PARTICIPANT, INVESTIGATOR
• Masking Details: Allocation will be concealed throughout the study, and research assistants interacting directly with participants will remain blinded to group assignment. Participants will be instructed not to disclose their dietary instructions to the researchers to maintain blinding
• Purpose: PREVENTION
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Professor

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: July 15, 2026
• First Posted: July 24, 2026
• Study Start: June 1, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): August 31, 2026
• Study Completion (Estimated): August 31, 2026
• Last Updated: July 24, 2026

Record last verified: 2026-07

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

MY (1)