Older adults and prepared meals: The influence of comfort, nostalgia, and texture preferences on acceptance

This study's objective was to develop desirable, safe, and nutritious dairy-rich breakfasts and desserts for older adults while identifying the influence of comfort, nostalgia, and texture preferences. Participants (n = 81, mean age = 71 ± 7.3 years) evaluated two breakfast meals (meat-containing, vegetarian) and two desserts (chocolate, vanilla puddings) for acceptance; they also answered inquiries concerning texture preferences and reported their feelings of comfort and nostalgia experienced during evaluation. Mean participant liking was 6.2 for the meat breakfast, 5.7 for the vegetarian breakfast, 5.8 for the chocolate pudding, and 4.3 for the vanilla dessert (along a 9-point scale). Meal liking was mediated by flavor intensity, sweetness intensity, and texture preference. Texture preference results indicated that older adults both like and are comfortable with orally handling textures typically deemed concerning for this population. Liking of the meals also increased if a higher experience of comfort was elicited during meal consumption (p < 0.05); perceived comfort decreased if there was insufficient flavor. Increased nostalgia experienced during meal consumption also increased overall liking. This study provided guidance on acceptable textures for potential product development while highlighting the importance of understanding the perception of nostalgia and comfort for older adults' meal acceptance. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS: Focusing on older adults, this study showed that nostalgia, comfort, and texture variety are all important elements of an older adult's diet. This research is useful for product developers who can use these elements in designing and testing the acceptance and healthfulness of prepared meals by older adults.