Hedonic shift learning based on calories

Abstract

Rats were conditioned to prefer a flavor that was paired with sucrose. When tested with flavored water and flavored chows, the rats preferred the calorie-paired flavor in both the familiar solution form and the new chow form. It is suggested that the hedonic value of a flavor enjoys a positive shift by association with calories, and that the shift is mediated centrally by a peripheral cholecystokinin reflex. © 1988, The Psychonomic Society, Inc.. All rights reserved.