Health & Medical Addiction & Recovery

A Taste Test for Alcoholism?

A Taste Test for Alcoholism? June 18, 2003 -- Children of alcoholics may be more sensitive to salty or sour tastes than people who don't have a family history of alcoholism, according to a new study.

Researchers say the findings suggest that alcoholic fathers may pass along certain genetic traits to their children that affect the way they perceive certain tastes, and a taste test may help determine a person's risk of alcoholism.

The study, which appears in the June issue of Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, compared the taste buds of 112 non-alcoholic adults, of which 45 had alcoholic fathers. The participants were each given a series of salty and sour solutions and asked to rate the concoctions' intensity and pleasantness.

The study found that children of alcoholic fathers rated salty solutions as more unpleasant than others. They also expressed a greater dislike of the sour solutions and found them more intense.

Because alcohol (ethanol) generally produces a bitter or sour taste sensation in healthy people, researchers say this inherited sensitivity to sour tastes may discourage alcohol consumption and dampen other risk factors of alcoholism. In fact, since the participants in the study had already been screened for alcohol dependence, researchers say this increased sensitivity to sour tastes among children of alcoholic fathers may have already served as a protective factor.

Researcher Henry R. Kranzler, MD, of the University of Connecticut Health Center, and colleagues say these salty and sour taste preferences may act as independent contributors to alcoholism risk. And if further studies confirm these results, an alcoholism taste test might be developed in the future that would reveal if a person were predisposed to become alcoholic.

SHARE
RELATED POSTS on "Health & Medical"
Women and Drug Abuse
Women and Drug Abuse
It is Possible For an Addict to Change
It is Possible For an Addict to Change
Pregnancy and Smoking - How to Stop the Smoking Habit While Pregnant
Pregnancy and Smoking - How to Stop the Smoking Habit While Pregnant
How To Organize An Intervention PART III - Hiring A Professional Interventionist
How To Organize An Intervention PART III - Hiring A Professional Interventionist
Going with a Christian Rehab: The Benefits
Going with a Christian Rehab: The Benefits
Major Signs Of Addiction
Major Signs Of Addiction
Smoking and Impotence
Smoking and Impotence
5 Things You Need to Know About Electronic Cigarettes
5 Things You Need to Know About Electronic Cigarettes
Feel Free To Quit Smoke With Silver Surfer Vaporizers
Feel Free To Quit Smoke With Silver Surfer Vaporizers
Inpatient Drug Rehab and the Best Drug Addiction Treatment
Inpatient Drug Rehab and the Best Drug Addiction Treatment
After Stopping Smoking - How Will I Feel After Stopping Smoking?
After Stopping Smoking - How Will I Feel After Stopping Smoking?
How Do You Know If You're An Alcoholic?
How Do You Know If You're An Alcoholic?
Men and Sex Addiction: The Eroticization of Depression
Men and Sex Addiction: The Eroticization of Depression
How to Organize an Intervention
How to Organize an Intervention
Drug Relapse - The Two Main Causes
Drug Relapse - The Two Main Causes
The Dangers of Alcohol Consumption
The Dangers of Alcohol Consumption
Sellati and Co of Virginia Beach VA
Sellati and Co of Virginia Beach VA
Stop Smoking Side Effects and Withdrawal Symptoms - Are They As Dangerous As Rumored?
Stop Smoking Side Effects and Withdrawal Symptoms - Are They As Dangerous As Rumored?
Hypnosis - The Best Way To Quit Smoking
Hypnosis - The Best Way To Quit Smoking
Raising Taxes Lowers Drinking Rates
Raising Taxes Lowers Drinking Rates
The Ban On Smoking In Public Places
The Ban On Smoking In Public Places
Quitting Smoking - Immediate Rewards of Quitting the Habit of Smoking
Quitting Smoking - Immediate Rewards of Quitting the Habit of Smoking
Nalmefene in Alcoholic Patients With High Drinking Risk
Nalmefene in Alcoholic Patients With High Drinking Risk
Burned
Burned

Leave Your Reply

*