Derek Victor Byrne

Shifting dietary patterns is necessary to meet global environmental and health targets. Legumes represent a nutritious and viable protein source. Yet, consumption remains low among consumer groups due to low familiarity and inferior sensory perceptions. Sensory conditioning has proven effective in increasing acceptance of unfamiliar foods and may have applicability in shaping future legume preferences. The study compared Mere-Exposure, Flavor–Flavor and Flavor–Nutrient learning strategies in their effectiveness in increasing consumer preferences for legumes in a Danish adult sample (N = 70). Participants filled out a questionnaire before and after a three-week at-home meal intervention. Fava beans were used as the legume case, and all participants, were exposed to 12 fava bean test stimuli. Participants in the Mere-Exposure group experienced a significant increase in preferences, while the Flavor–Flavor and Flavor–Nutrient groups did not. The Mere-Exposure group also experienced an increase in liking of the appearance and flavor of fava beans. By showcasing the potential of a widely applicable sensory strategy, the study highlights how sensory conditioned learning might support the adoption of more sustainable foods in an adult sample. The results provide insights for health and nutritional personnel, researchers and policymakers seeking to promote sustainable diets.

Background/Objectives: Anhedonia, the inability to derive pleasure from typically enjoyable activities, is prevalent in psychiatric and neurological disorders, and is linked to conditions such as obesity and eating disorders. Simultaneously, characteristics of altered eating behavior have been observed amongst these segments, yet the link between anhedonia and eating behavior, and its mechanisms remain underexplored. Methods: This current narrative review synthesizes evidence for a relationship between pleasure perception and eating behavior among individuals with anhedonic traits, emphasizing the role of reward processing and its variations across different segments. Results: Our narrative review identified specific segments with anhedonic traits and described the link to characteristics of their eating behavior. Conclusions: This research can significantly contribute to a better understanding of the differences in the relationship between pleasure and eating behavior amongst individuals with anhedonic traits, which is crucial for developing effective treatment strategies for individuals affected by anhedonia and disturbed eating.

Interoceptive and exteroceptive awareness (awareness of bodily signals and sensory experiences) are increasingly recognised as important for guiding eating behaviour. However, research remains limited on how such awareness can be enhanced in everyday contexts and how this affects eating behaviour. This study explored whether an interoceptive-exteroceptive attention training programme, delivered through written instructions, could enhance such abilities in healthy adults and promote healthier food choices. Thirty-five healthy adults completed a 14-day attention training period involving daily use of written materials designed to enhance attention to interoceptive and exteroceptive cues before, during, and after eating. Measures included objective and self-reported indicators of interoception, exteroception, and dietary behaviour, assessed pre- and post-attention training. Participants reported significant increases in attention to sensory experiences and intuitive and mindful eating. A reduction in the consumption of unhealthy snack components was also observed. In post-study evaluations, participants described the attention training as positive and awareness-enhancing. Most reported becoming more attentive in their eating and snacking behaviour, and over 80% intended to continue practising awareness after the study. While not all outcomes reached statistical significance, the findings provide preliminary, proof-of-concept evidence supporting the feasibility of interoceptive-exteroceptive attention strategies for fostering healthier, more self-regulated eating in everyday life.

The market for plant-based alternatives to animal foods has increased rapidly in the past decade, mainly due to consumer demand. Little evidence is available regarding nutritional impacts, drivers, and barriers to using these products as substitutes for animal foods in real-life conditions. This pilot study followed 16 Danish adults (30 ± 11 years old; 11 females) for 4 weeks with substituting milk, cheese, and yogurt with plant-based analogues to dairy (PBADs) and assessed their drivers and barriers to applying the intervention with a mixed-method approach. PBADs are constantly compared to their animal counterparts, both regarding product characteristics, such as price and sensory properties, as well as cultural roles and subjective memories. The mixed methods showed dairy attachment, price, and taste were the main barriers to consuming PBAD, while changes in life and social circles were drivers (qualitative data). As for the liking of PBADs, plant-based yoghurt was the preferred intervention product (73.5/100, p < 0.05), followed by plant-based drinks (65.9/100), while plant-based cheese was the lowest rated (47.9/100, p < 0.05). As for dietary changes, a lower average intake of sugars, saturated fatty acids, cholesterol, calcium, phosphorus, and zinc was observed after the intervention. Additionally, this study describes the attachment of the study population to milk and dairy products. It shows that choosing dairy is beyond nourishment but is connected to tradition, culture, pleasure, memories, and a sense of belonging. In contrast, there is no history or attachment to PBADs.

Here, we report the genome sequence of Weissella soli 3-88 isolated from Kaldá river in Iceland, using Oxford Nanopore sequencing. We classified the strain within W. soli by calculating and reporting its average nucleotide identity values compared to other W. soli strains.

Introduction: The cornerstone in the management of type 2 diabetes (T2D) is lifestyle modification including a healthy diet, typically one in which carbohydrate provides 45%–60% of total energy intake (E%). Nevertheless, systematic reviews and meta-analyses of trials with low carbohydrate diets (which are increased in protein and/or fat) for T2D have found improved glycaemic control in the first months relative to comparator diets with higher carbohydrate content. Studies lasting ≥1 year are inconclusive, which could be due to decreased long-term dietary adherence. We hypothesise that glucometabolic benefits can be achieved following 12 months of carbohydrate-restricted dieting, by maximising dietary adherence through delivery of meal kits, containing fresh, high-quality ingredients for breakfast, dinner and snacks, combined with nutrition education and counselling. Methods and analysis: This protocol describes a 12-month investigator-initiated randomised controlled, open-label, superiority trial with two parallel groups that will examine the effect of a carbohydrate-reduced high-protein (CRHP) diet compared with a conventional diabetes (CD) diet on glucometabolic control (change in glycated haemoglobin being the primary outcome) in 100 individuals with T2D and body mass index (BMI) >25 kg/m ² . Participants will be randomised 1:1 to receive either the CRHP or the CD diet (comprised 30/50 E% from carbohydrate, 30/17 E% from protein and 40/33 E% from fat, respectively) for 12 months delivered as meal kits, containing foods covering more than two-thirds of the participants’ estimated daily energy requirements for weight maintenance. Adherence to the allocated diets will be reinforced by monthly sessions of nutrition education and counselling from registered clinical dietitians. Ethics and dissemination: The trial has been approved by the National Committee on Health Research Ethics of the Capital Region of Denmark. The trial will be conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki. Results will be submitted for publication in international peer-reviewed scientific journals. Trial registration number: NCT05330247 . Protocol version: The trial protocol was approved on 9 March 2022 (study number: H-21057605). The latest version of the protocol, described in this manuscript, was approved on 23 June 2023.

Chocolate-flavored milk contributes to excessive intake of added sugars among children and adolescents, which why it is a good candidate product for sucrose replacement. This study investigates how replacing sucrose partially or completely with different sweetener systems affects the sensory profile and consumer liking. Five chocolate-flavored milk treatments were formulated, varying in sucrose replacement level (partial: 58%; complete: 100%) and sweetener system (synthetic: acesulfame-K; natural: rebaudioside M-erythritol blend). Relative-to-Reference Scaling by a trained panel confirmed that no significant differences in the sensory profile when partial sucrose replacement was compared to sucrose, whereas the complete replacement increased bitter taste, pungent flavor, licorice flavor and mouth-drying. A total of 104 consumers evaluated the treatments for liking and indicated their temporal perceptions with temporal check-all-that-apply. Latent variable clustering performed on liking ratings revealed two clusters, which perceived temporal sensory characteristics differently depending on the sweetener system. Cluster 1 preferred the sucrose control over treatments with complete and partial replacement using a natural sweetener system, with complete replacement being perceived as having off-flavor. Cluster 2 preferred the sucrose control over partial and complete replacement using either of the sweetener replacements investigated, which were characterized as off-flavored and bitter. Understanding these consumer segments enables the food industry to develop effective low-energy formulations using synthetic and natural non-nutritive sweeteners, leading to reduced sugar consumption.

The development of scales and questionnaires to assess pleasure perception has gained prominence, particularly for evaluating anhedonia in mental disorders. The Food Pleasure Scale is a comprehensive tool exclusively dedicated to measuring pleasure perception from food and food-related experiences. This study aimed to evaluate the face validity and consistency reliability of the Food Pleasure Scale using a mixed methods approach. Twenty-two participants completed the Food Pleasure Scale questionnaire and participated in in-depth interviews to understand their interpretation of the scale items. The interview data underwent thematic analysis, and the quantitative survey data was compared to the qualitative interview responses. Results indicated a high level of understanding of all items in the Food Pleasure Scale, confirming its face validity and applicability. The mixed methods approach supported the consistency reliability, showing consistency between quantitative measures and participants’ explicit and implicit expressions of food pleasure. Furthermore, the study revealed a novel aspect related to food pleasure: the concept of “making an effort”. Overall, this study highlights the comprehensibility, validity, and potential of the Food Pleasure Scale in consumer studies. It effectively captures the subjective experience of pleasure derived from food and food-related encounters, making it a valuable tool for further research in this domain.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has highlighted the need for immediate action regarding the escalating global prevalence of overweight and obesity. Based on the need for long-term strategies supporting dietary behaviour changes, the concept of ‘interoception’ (i.e., sensing the body’s internal state) has been proposed as promising for understanding and controlling food intake behaviours. As eating behaviours are motivated by the need for securing energy demands as well as the desire for pleasure, investigating the bodily sensations perceived in relation to food consumption can support our understanding of human food and eating behaviours. Here, a consumer study was conducted on 286 Danish consumers to explore the interoceptive experience of snack food consumption. This study included an investigation of the consumers’ interoceptive capabilities and ability to feel pleasure, intuitive eating behaviours, snack food consumption frequency, the drivers of snack food consumption, food-related pleasure, and post-ingestive sensations linked to snack food consumption. The study was conducted on consumers with different Body Mass Index (BMI) levels to study potential differences between these groups. The study showed normal interoceptive capabilities and abilities to feel pleasure, with no differences between BMI groups. Regarding intuitive eating, the study found intuitive eating to be more prevalent among the group holding normal BMI. No significant differences between BMI groups were found in terms of snack intake frequency. However, differences between BMI groups were found in terms of: the drivers of snack consumption, the aspects bringing food-related pleasure from snack consumption, and the post-ingestive sensations felt after eating snack foods.