Preference for salt in a food may be alterable without a low sodium diet

•Subjects were randomized to abrupt or gradual salt reduction strategy groups.•Subjects completed pre- and post-study taste tests, separated by a 16-week salt reduction study.•Liking for salt in tomato juice was compared between pre- and post-study taste tests.•Liking for low and reduced salt tomato juice increased among both salt reduction strategy groups.•Both salt reduction groups experienced a decrease in salt preference without low sodium diets.

In response to current efforts to reduce population-wide dietary salt intake, the objective of this study was to determine whether liking for reduced sodium and low sodium tomato juice could increase following repeated exposure over an extended period. Eighty-three adult subjects participated in a three-part study: an initial taste test, a 16-week longitudinal study, and a final taste test. Subjects gave liking ratings of four tomato juice samples ranging in sodium from 640 mg (a concentration comparable to a commercially available product) to 136 mg per 237 ml serving (a low sodium concentration) at both taste tests. For the longitudinal study, subjects were divided into two balanced groups based on PROP sensitivity, hedonic sensitivity to salt, and motivation to reduce dietary salt intake; the abrupt group received tomato juice reduced in sodium to reach a low sodium target at week four, and the gradual group received juice reduced in sodium via difference thresholds to reach the same target at week 14. Though liking for the juice with the highest salt content was unchanged between taste tests, liking for all reduced salt juices increased at the final taste test relative to the initial taste test among subjects in both salt reduction groups. In addition, subjects in both groups experienced a downward shift in preference for salt in tomato juice, indicating that repeated exposure may be sufficient to alter preference for salt in a food in the absence of a low sodium diet. That salt preference may be altered by exposure alone within the context of a high salt diet is promising for both the food industry and individual consumers.