Investigation of taste function and eating habits in women with polycystic ovarian syndrome

Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) is the most common endocrine disorder of the women of reproductive age. Hyperandrogenism, oligo/anovulation and polycystic ovarian morphology are the main features of the syndrome, however, PCOS is linked with several metabolic disturbances including but not limited to obesity, insulin resistance, impaired glucose metabolism, and dyslipidemia. Various hormonal diseases such as obesity, diabetes and hypothyroidism have been associated with alterations in taste function and eating behavior. Additionally, periods with hormonal fluctuations such as pregnancy, menopause and menstruation were shown to change taste perception and related eating behavior. No data are available regarding taste function in PCOS. The aim of the current study was to assess the taste function and eating behavior in patients with PCOS compared to healthy women. Forty-four patients diagnosed with PCOS and 36 age- and body mass index (BMI)-matched healthy controls were enrolled. Taste strips including four basic tastes, sweet, salty, sour and bitter were used to assess taste sensitivity and validated Turkish versions of Food Cravings Questionnaire-Trait (FCQ-T), Night Eating Questionnaire (NEQ) and 3 Factor Eating Questionnaire-R18 (TFEQ-R18) were used to assess eating behavior. Anthropometric, hormonal, and biochemical assessments and their relations with taste function and eating behavior were performed. PCOS patients had lower total taste scores compared to controls (11.7 ± 2.2 versus 13.1 ± 1.4, p=0.001). Subgroup analysis showed that sour and salty taste scores were lower in PCOS group than controls (2.4 ± 0.9 versus 2.9 ± 0.7, p=0.004; and 2.6 ± 1 versus 3.1 ± 0.7, p=0.01 respectively). On the other hand, sweet and bitter taste scores were similar between the two groups (3.5 ± 0.9 versus 3.6 ± 0.7, p=0.64; 3.3 ± 0.7 versus 3.6 ± 0.6; p=0.053 respectively). Eating questionnaires revealed no significant difference between patients with PCOS and controls. Our results suggest that taste function is impaired in PCOS without any alteration in eating behavior. The impairment of gustatory function is associated with androgen excess.