Table 2.

Summary of findings: Effects of identified determinants on sweetness preference.

Sweetness Preference Determinant	Studies		Overall Findings
	No.	Consistent Findings?
1. Age	9	Yes	•  in childhood and elderly populations.
2. Dietary/Nutritional Factors	14	Some	•  in fasted vs. satiated state.
			• Findings for sweetness preference based on dietary macronutrient composition or meal composition were inconsistent.
3. Reproductive Hormonal Factors	7	Some	• Possible inverse relationship: with higher levels of progesterone.
4. Genetics/Heritability	9	Some	• Heritability accounted for some of the variability in sweetness preference.
			• Inconsistent findings with respect to sweetness preference and PROP sensitivity.
5. Body Weight	11	Yes	• No association between sweetness preference and BMI status across age groups and genders.
6. Weight Loss	5	No	• Inconsistent findings with respect to the effects of weight loss on sweetness preference.
7. Sound	2	N/A	• Limited evidence to draw conclusions.
8. Personality Traits	5	No	• Inconsistent findings. Limited evidence to draw conclusions.
9. Ethnicity and Lifestyle
• Different Ethnic Groups	5	Yes	•  among westernized cultures compared to their Asian counterparts.
			•  may be due to familiarization of foods.
• Traditional/Modern Lifestyles	3	Yes	•  with a modern vs. traditional lifestyle.
			•  may be due to familiarization of foods.
• Physical Activity Levels	2	Yes	•  in individuals who are more vs. less physically active.
10. Previous Sweetness Exposure	6	No	• Inconsistent findings.
11. Disease
• Neurological/Psychological	7	No	• Inconsistent findings among studies in subjects with a neurological or psychological disease.
• T2DM/GDM	3	No	• Limited evidence among studies in individuals with T2DM or GDM to draw conclusions.
Other	2	No	• Limited evidence among studies in individuals with other diseases (namely, PWS or end-stage renal disease) to draw conclusions.
12. Other Factors	8	N/A	• Study objectives and results were too diverse to draw conclusions.

= increased sweetness preference; = decreased sweetness preference; BMI = body mass index; b/w = between; GDM = gestational diabetes mellitus; N/A = not applicable; No. = number; PROP = 6-n-propylthiouracil; PWS = Prader-Willi Syndrome; T2DM = type 2 diabetes mellitus; GDM = Gestational Diabetes Mellitus; vs. = versus.