Isomalt taste thresholds in people and spider monkeys
What it found
People and spider monkeys could taste isomalt at concentrations as low as 20 mM.
Both were less sensitive to isomalt than to sucrose.
What they found
Studies in people
Human detection threshold
The ten people detected isomalt at concentrations from 5 to 40 mM, with a median of 20 mM. Men and women did not differ significantly in sensitivity.
Animal and lab studies
Spider monkey preference
The four spider monkeys preferred isomalt over water at concentrations from 10 to 20 mM, with a median of 20 mM. Only the female reached 10 mM.
Purely sweet taste
Spider monkeys preferred all isomalt concentrations above threshold, from 20 to 500 mM, at more than 90%. They showed no rejection responses, suggesting they taste it as purely sweet.
Studies in people and animals
Less sensitive than sucrose
People detected isomalt at 20 mM, higher than the 5.5 mM reported for sucrose. Spider monkeys preferred isomalt at 20 mM, higher than the 3 mM reported for sucrose.
Other findings
Gastric distress caution
Like most sweet-tasting polyols, isomalt may cause gastric distress, including flatulence and diarrhea, when consumed in large quantities.
What the authors conclude
“The results of the present study demonstrate that both human subjects and spider monkeys display a taste threshold of 20 mM for isomalt.”
Also in their conclusions
- They say the findings may help choose appropriate amounts and concentrations of isomalt when it is used as a sugar substitute or food additive.
- They suggest the spider monkey threshold values may be useful for deciding how much isomalt to use in diets for frugivorous primates or in tablets for oral medication.
- They note that spider monkeys appear to be at least as sensitive as, and possibly more sensitive than, humans to isomalt.
How it was done
No study had measured how sensitive people are to the taste of isomalt, and none had measured taste preference for isomalt in any nonhuman primate. The authors wanted to fill those gaps.
Ten healthy adults (five women, five men) tasted isomalt solutions to find the lowest concentration they could detect. Four spider monkeys chose between isomalt solutions and water in short drinking tests.
What it can’t tell you
- The human part of the study tested only ten adults, so the results may not apply to everyone.
- The spider monkey part involved only four animals, so the findings may not hold for all spider monkeys.
- The study measured taste detection and preference, not what happens in the body after eating isomalt.
Who paid
- Authors work at
- Linköping University, Sweden; Instituto de Neuro-Etologia, Mexico
The paper
- Title
- Taste detection threshold of human (Homo sapiens) subjects and taste preference threshold of black-handed spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi) for the sugar substitute isomalt
- Type
- Study
- Evidence
- Studies in people · animals · lab
- Summarised from
- Full text
- Cite
- Pereira S, Hernandez Salazar LT, Laska M (2021). Taste detection threshold of human (Homo sapiens) subjects and taste preference threshold of black-handed spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi) for the sugar substitute isomalt. Primates; journal of primatology. doi:10.1007/s10329-020-00868-5Free full textPubMed 33011867DOI
Summary written 26 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error