Rationale

Past research suggests that people with opioid dependence show increased consumption of sweet food, but it is unclear if this is influenced by altered taste preference and/or taste perception.

Objectives

We tested whether people prescribed opioid substitution therapy (OST) exhibited a shift in preference towards sweeter flavours, and altered perception of sweetness, and explored whether these measures of taste preference/perception were associated with measures of opioid use.

Methods

Three groups of participants (people prescribed OST, n=36; people with past opioid dependence, but now abstinent from all opioids, n=18; and controls with no history of substance dependence other than nicotine, n=29) provided ratings of “sweetness”, “liking”, and “desire” of 4 solutions with varying concentrations of sucrose.

Results

We did not find significant differences between groups in the effect of sucrose concentration on “sweetness”, “liking”, or “desire” ratings. However, among those prescribed OST, frequency of recent illicit opioid use was associated with reduced perception of “sweetness” of low sucrose concentrations. Higher methadone dose was associated with a shift towards liking sweeter concentrations. Among those with past opioid dependence, longer duration of abstinence from opioids was associated with a shift towards liking sweeter concentrations.

Conclusions

Among people currently dependent on opioids, reduced sensitivity to low levels of sweetness and increased preference for sweeter flavours may be associated with increased dependence on opioids. Among those who have ceased opioid use, the association between preference for sweeter flavours and duration of abstinence is a novel finding that deserves further investigation.

中文翻译：

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阿片类药物依赖性与甜味偏好之间的关联

基本原理

过去的研究表明，阿片类药物依赖性人群的甜食消费量增加，但是尚不清楚这是否受到口味偏好和/或口味感知变化的影响。

目标

我们测试了处方阿片类药物替代疗法（OST）的人是否表现出偏向甜味的转变，以及对甜味感的改变，并探讨了这些口味偏好/知觉的量度是否与阿片类药物的使用量有关。

方法

三组参与者（处方OST的人，n = 36；过去曾接受阿片类药物但现在戒断所有阿片类药物的人，n = 18；除尼古丁外没有药物依赖史的对照组，n = 29）提供了“蔗糖浓度不同的4种溶液的“甜度”，“喜欢”和“期望”。

结果

我们没有发现蔗糖浓度对“甜”，“喜欢”或“期望”等级的影响之间存在显着差异。但是，在这些规定的OST中，最近非法使用阿片类药物的频率与低蔗糖浓度的“甜味”感降低有关。高剂量的美沙酮与偏爱甜味剂浓度有关。在过去有阿片类药物依赖者中，戒除阿片类药物的持续时间较长与向喜好甜味剂浓度的转变有关。

结论

在目前依赖阿片类药物的人群中，对低水平甜味的敏感性降低以及对更甜的口味的偏爱可能与对阿片类药物的依赖性增加有关。在那些停止使用阿片类药物的人中，对较甜口味的偏好与禁欲持续时间之间的联系是一个新颖的发现，值得进一步研究。