SWEET SPOT DRIVER

Beverages containing LCSs now account for up to one-third of beverages consumed in America ( 45, 47, 48). It was estimated in 2009–2010 that 19.5% of American adults consumed a beverage with LCSs on a given day, whereas only 11.4% and 4.6% consumed tabletop sweeteners or foods with LCSs, respectively ( 51). Low- and no-calorie beverages are the main vehicle for LCS consumption, but LCSs are also now found in tabletop sweeteners, grain products, dairy products, desserts, and condiments ( 8, 50). However, the proportion of children and adults who are LCS consumers may be underestimated for a number of reasons, including the following: 1) consumers may not be aware of LCSs in food or beverage products 2) producers and manufacturers are not required to provide information about LCS content on labels ( 48) and 3) current food databases might not accurately capture the rapid changes in the food supply ( 49). In 1999–2000, only 8.7% of children and 26.9% of adults were LCS consumers, whereas in 2007–2008, 14.9% of children and 32.0% of adults were LCS consumers ( 47). This is measured by proportions of consumers and use of products containing LCSs rather than actual intake in grams, because no data are available for the latter. LCSsĪs added sugar consumption in America has decreased in recent years, LCS consumption has increased markedly ( 8). On their own, soft drinks contribute 7.1% to total energy, making them the greatest individual contributor to energy intake ( 46).

In 2014, soft drinks provided ∼60% of the SSB calories per day, whereas juice and sports/energy drinks provided ∼15% and ∼25% of the SSB calories per day, respectively ( 45). This results in SSBs contributing 155 kcal/d for children and 151 kcal/d for adults ( 42). In America, nearly two-thirds of children ( 43) and half of adults ( 44) consume ≥1 SSB on a given day. Among adults, individuals 20–39 y of age consumed the most added sugar, with a mean of 397 kcal/d in men (or 14.1% of total energy) and 275 kcal/d in women (or 14.5% of total energy) ( 40).Īlthough sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) consumption has declined recently ( 41, 42), energy intake from SSBs remains high. Although extraordinary events like the COVID-19 pandemic and factors that lead to food insecurity highlight the importance of access to food as a critical element in food choice, the fact that Americans spend 18 y of age) men (335 kcal/d) than in adult women (239 kcal/d), although the percentage of energy from added sugars was not different between the sexes (12.7% and 13.2% of total energy for men and women, respectively) ( 40). In addition, they influence whether one self-reports as having “eaten well” ( 2, 6), outranking other factors such as nutritional quality, ethics/sustainability, or monetary considerations. The sensory properties of foods and beverages are not only determinants of purchasing decisions ( 2–4), but also the most important index of interest in new foods and beverages ( 5).

SWEET SPOT DRIVER

However, consumers consistently report that sensory factors are the primary driver ( 2).

Hedonics, sweetness, intake, added sugars, low-calorie sweeteners IntroductionĮating is an extremely complex behavior governed by a wide array of constantly changing environmental (e.g., food availability, health messaging), behavioral (e.g., food choice, portion size, temporal patterns), and physiological (e.g., sensory, endocrine, neural) determinants ( 1).

Sweet spot