Sweet music influences sensory and hedonic perception of food products with varying sugar levels

Reducing sugar intake is an important nutritional goal in most developed countries. Despite the health consequences of excessive sugar consumption (e.g., non-communicable diseases), individuals are often reluctant to shift dietary habits due to the high hedonic appeal of sugar-rich products. Manipulating the intrinsic sensory attributes of foods (such as color or aroma) has been put forward as a promising framework for enhancing taste perception and increasing acceptance of low-sugar products. So far, it is less known whether extrinsic sensory cues may have similar effects. In this within-subjects experiment (N = 106, 64 % women), we tested how auditory stimuli (i.e., music) may impact the perception and acceptance of products varying in sweetness levels. Participants tasted samples of two product categories (vegetables and cookies), with higher (carrots and cookies) and lower sweetness levels (cucumbers and 0 % sugar cookies), while listening to previously tested soundtracks that were strongly (vs weakly) associated with sweetness. Results showed that the high "sweetness" soundtrack increased the sweetness ratings of all products compared to the low "sweetness" soundtrack. Participants also reported higher preference and more favorable intentions of future consumption when the high "sweetness" soundtrack was played. Overall, these findings suggest that extrinsic sensory cues, namely music, may aid in reducing sugar intake by increasing the acceptance of products with lower sugar content.