Evaluation of the Transient Sense of Relief Following Soup Intake, and Related Psychological and Physiological Factors

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine differences in the feeling of relief （comfort induced by food ingestion） after intake of different types of soup, and the effects of psychological and physiological factors on postprandial sense of relief. Before the examination, a sensory test was performed to classify test samples （corn potage [90 kcal], chicken consommé [43 kcal], and iso-caloric but low-flavor corn and chicken placebo soups） using 6 trained panels. For the main test, 11 women （age 22.6±0.3 yr） consumed a soup as breakfast after an overnight fast on four different days in randomized order. Relief and fullness scores, heart rate, sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system （PNS） activity using heart rate variability analysis, and energy expenditure using gas analysis were measured before feeding and at 1-h intervals after feeding. According to the preference assessment, the most preferred soup was corn potage followed by chicken consommé, and the least preferred were the two placebos. Postprandial relief scores were significantly higher after ingestion of corn potage than after other soups, being positively correlated with preference scores, fullness scores and heart rate. A negative correlation with PNS activity was also observed. Our data suggest that ingestion of corn potage provides a greater feeling of relief, in terms of preference, fullness, and increase in heart rate