2023-09-28 13:41:00
Sweeteners were developed to sweeten foods and drinks in a low-calorie manner. Given the global obesity epidemic, this is a good approach to counteracting excess weight. However, it has now been discovered that sweeteners can also be very harmful to health. However, a study from Austria came to an interesting result. FITBOOK nutrition expert Sophie Brünke presents the most important findings.
Sweetener Sucralose Found to Be Healthier Than Sugar, According to Austrian Study
People who want to limit their sugar consumption often turn to other sweeteners. However, there are studies that show that certain sweeteners can be carcinogenic or even impair memory. A research team from Vienna took a closer look at the sweetener sucralose. This is an impressive 600 times sweeter than white table sugar. You can find out in this article why the sweetener is supposed to be healthier than sugar.
What Was Investigated?
The research team investigated the extent to which sugar and the sweetener sucralose influence intestinal health to promote inflammatory processes in the body.
Why the Gut Affects Inflammation in the Body
The background is that the intestinal flora consists of a large number of bacteria. The “healthy” bacteria stabilize the intestinal barrier and in this way regulate the immune system. The “unhealthy” bacteria, on the other hand, form so-called lipopolysaccharides (LPS for short), which release toxins and promote inflammation. If the intestinal flora is in balance, these toxins (endotoxins) are excreted in the stool and do not enter the body.
However, when the intestinal barrier is damaged, such as due to leaky gut syndrome, these endotoxins can enter the bloodstream. As a result, the immune system responds by releasing inflammatory messenger substances. A “silent inflammation” occurs and endotoxemia occurs. A kind of poisoning that is triggered from within. The dangerous thing about these subclinical inflammations is that they do not cause any noticeable symptoms. Only markers in the blood indicate the inflammation. If the inflammation persists for a long time, it can be involved in the development of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases.
Procedure of the Study
The aim was to evaluate the effect of different sweetened beverages on post-meal levels of inflammation (endotoxins in the blood) in healthy young adults.
A total of 18 healthy, normal-weight non-smokers who were between 24 and 31 years old took part in the study. Three weeks before the study, participants were asked to avoid consuming intense sweeteners. Based on the nutritional recommendations of professional societies, the diet of the test subjects was standardized two days before the intervention. On the day of the intervention, they received a light breakfast and one of three different drinks:
– Drink with sucrose, the white table sugar (110 milligrams)
– Drink with sucralose, the sweetener (180 milligrams)
– A sucralose-maltodextrin mixed drink (180 and 110 milligrams)
Before breakfast and at several times thereafter, blood was drawn from the participants to measure endotoxin levels in the blood. In addition, the scientists used a model with intestinal cells in which they tested whether sugar or sucralose had an influence on the permeability of the intestine.
Sugar Caused Increased Inflammation Levels in the Blood, Sweeteners Did Not
The researchers found that those subjects who consumed the sucrose-sweetened drink had significantly higher levels of endotoxins in their blood compared to those who received the sucralose drink or the sucralose-maltodextrin mixed drink. So the sugar caused endotoxemia after eating.
The model that examined intestinal cells also showed that exposure to sugar increased the permeability of the intestinal barrier, but not to sucralose. This makes the intestines more permeable to toxins caused by sugar.
Do Other Nutritional Factors Promote the Formation of Endotoxins?
In particular, foods with a high fat or sugar content increase the level of endotoxins in the intestine, which can lead to endotoxemia after a meal. These can be animal products such as lard or liver, but also pastries, confectionery and fast food.
Limitations of the Study
Although the required number of participants was calculated based on data from a previous study, only eleven of the 18 subjects completed the study. Seven others dropped out for various reasons, such as a corona infection. Accordingly, the results should be treated with caution.
Furthermore, only one aspect of the effect of sweeteners and sugar on health was considered here. However, these can act in a variety of ways in the body. In the past, for example, it was found that sucralose has a genotoxic effect (FITBOOK reported).
To gain meaningful insights into the effect on endotoxin levels in the blood, a larger number of participants should be observed over a longer period of time.
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