ABSTRACT

This study aims to determine oral nutritional supplement (ONS) taste preferences of inpatients, and show the relationship of these preferences to age and comorbidities

Two-hundred patients were included in the present study. Patients’ demographic characteristics, reasons for hospitalization, comorbidities, pharmaceuticals, smoking, alcoholism, depression status and NRS2002 scores were investigated. Five different tastes (vanilla, strawberry, coffee, bananas and peach) were tested. Visual analog scale (VAS: from 0 to 10 points) was used to detect patients’ preference scores for each taste

Mean age of the participants was 58.4±16.3 years (51.5% male). Polypharmacy, chronic alcoholism and smoking cigarette were seen in 61.5%, 4.5% and 12% of the participants, respectively. Medians of VAS scores were 8 points for coffee (min-max: 1-10), 8 points for strawberry (min-max: 2-10), 8 points for bananas (min-max: 1-10), 7 points for peach (min-max: 1-10) and 6 points for vanilla (min-max: 1-10) (p<0.001). Median VAS scores were significantly lower in peach and vanilla group than others (p<0.001). When VAS scores were compared according to gender, age, chronic diseases, educational level, polypharmacy, malnutrition, smoking and alcoholism, it was seen that there were no significantly differences between groups. However, VAS scores of vanilla and peach groups were significantly lower than the other tastes according to the above mentioned status (p<0.001).

In this study, it was shown that peach and vanilla were the least preferred tastes. But, no association was detected between ONS taste preferences, on one hand, and gender, age, chronic diseases, educational level, polypharmacy, malnutrition, smoking and alcoholism, on the other