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Variation in umami taste perception in the German and Norwegian population

European Journal of Clinical Nutrition volume 64, pages 1248–1250 (2010)Cite this article

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Abstract

In this study, we investigated inter-individual differences in sensitivity to mono-sodium glutamate (MSG) and elucidated the familiarity to umami taste in two European populations. The study consisted of two parts: (1) a survey based on questionnaire and (2) psychophysical screening for inter-individual variation of MSG sensitivity. The psychophysical tests revealed that 3.2% of the German participants and 4.6% of the Norwegian participants were potential non-tasters of MSG. In conclusion, our study confirms inter-individual differences in sensitivity to MSG in humans.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Oral Biology, Faculty of Dentistry, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway

    P B Singh

  2. Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Smell & Taste Clinic, University of Dresden Medical School, Dresden, Germany

    P B Singh, B Schuster & H-S Seo

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  1. P B Singh
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  2. B Schuster
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  3. H-S Seo
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Correspondence to P B Singh.

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Singh, P., Schuster, B. & Seo, HS. Variation in umami taste perception in the German and Norwegian population. Eur J Clin Nutr 64, 1248–1250 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2010.133

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2010.133

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