Sucrose taste thresholds: age-related differences.
Sucrose taste detection thresholds were measured in 71 adults aged 20 to 88 years. A forced-choice, tracking procedure was used to eliminate subject response bias and rinses were included between all stimuli. A significant age-related decrease in sensitivity was observed. However, the loss of sensitivity was not great and elderly people had highly variable thresholds. A similar study on salt taste acuity has been reported from this laboratory demonstrating a small, but statistically significant threshold increment with age. The observation that age-related differences in taste sensitivity are not large is consistent with biological information that taste bud cells are continuously replaced in adult mammals.
D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D013395:Sucrose; D013649:Taste; D013652:Taste Threshold
D013395:Sucrose