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. 2021 Feb 9;151(3):605–614. doi: 10.1093/jn/nxaa400

TABLE 2.

Associations of poor taste and smell with poor appetite and undernutrition1

Poor appetite2 P value3 Undernutrition4 P value3
Poor total taste score5 1.04 (0.19, 5.76) 1.00 1.15 (0.43, 3.05) 1.00
Poor total taste score (no umami) 1.78 (0.33, 9.60) 1.00 1.58 (0.58, 4.31) 1.00
Poor sweet score 0.64 (0.14, 2.96) 1.00 0.83 (0.38, 1.83) 1.00
Poor sour score 0.90 (0.29, 2.79) 1.00 0.80 (0.44, 1.46) 1.00
Poor salty score 1.78 (0.62, 5.07) 1.00 1.27 (0.73, 2.23) 1.00
Poor bitter score 0.25 (0.02, 2.78) 1.00 0.71 (0.22, 2.31) 1.00
Poor umami score 0.68 (0.21, 2.19) 1.00 0.84 (0.46, 1.53) 1.00
Self-reported poor taste 8.44 (1.56, 45.56) 0.01 2.11 (0.49, 9.04) 0.32
Poor smell identification score6 1.50 (0.48, 4.71) 1.00 1.35 (0.69, 2.62) 1.00
Poor TDI score 3.67 (0.78, 17.19) 0.40 2.02 (0.73, 5.58) 0.68
Poor smell threshold score 4.71 (1.11, 19.91) 0.16 1.85 (0.77, 4.44) 0.68
Poor smell discrimination score 0.15 (0.02, 1.26) 0.32 0.99 (0.38, 2.57) 1.00
Self-reported poor smell 2.31 (0.50, 10.74) 0.29 0.85 (0.27, 2.68) 0.78
1

Values are ORs (95% CIs) or P values. All models adjusted for age, sex, educational status, smoking status, medication, Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression score, and Mini Mental State Examination score. TDI, threshold-discrimination-identification.

2

Poor appetite: Council of Nutrition Appetite Questionnaire score <28.

3

P values for the individual taste and smell scores are adjusted according to Bonferroni correction; P values for self-reported taste and smell are unadjusted.

4

Undernutrition: >5% body weight loss averaged over 2 y or BMI (in kg/m2) <20 (if age <70 y) or <22 (if age >70 y).

5

Poor taste: total taste score <6, total taste score (umami excluded) <5, sweet score <2, sour score <2, salty score <2, bitter score <1, or umami score <1.

6

Poor smell: TDI score ≤19.5, T score ≤2.5, D score ≤7, or I score ≤9.