2023-05-15 13:36:00
“Don’t use non-sugar sweeteners for weight control.” This is the message launched by the World Health Organization in a new guideline published today on the so-called NSS (Non-sugar sweeteners), a category that includes aspartame, acesulfame K, advantame, cyclamates, neotame, saccharin, sucralose, stevia and derivatives of stevia.
In the document, WHO advises against its use to control weight or reduce the risk of non-communicable diseases. The recommendation is based on a systematic review of the available evidence, which suggests that “the use of Nss confers no long-term benefit in reducing body fat in adults or childrenThe review findings also suggest that “there may be potential undesirable effects with long-term use of Nss.” Effects such as “a increased risk of type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and adult mortality“.
Replacing free sugars with non-sugar sweeteners “does not help control weight in the long term – highlights Francesco Branca, WHO director for Nutrition and Food Safety – People should consider other ways to reduce free sugar intake, such as consuming foods with naturally occurring sugars, such as fruit, or unsweetened foods and beverages. Nss are not essential dietary factors and have no nutritional value. To improve health, people should reduce the level of sweets in their diet altogether, starting early in life.”
The recommendation applies to all people except those already with diabetes and includes all synthetic, naturally occurring or modified non-nutritive sweeteners that are not classified as sugars found in processed foods and beverages, or sold on their own to be added to foods and beverages by consumers. Conversely, the recommendation does not apply to personal care and hygiene products that contain NSS, such as toothpastes, skin creams and medications, or to low-calorie sugars and sugar alcohols (polyols), which are sugars or sugar derivatives containing calories and are therefore not considered Nss.
Finally, WHO points out that the recommendation was evaluated as conditional, since the link between NSS and disease outcomes observed in the trials could be confounded by the baseline characteristics of the study participants and by the complicated patterns of NSS use. “This indicates that decisions in terms of policies based on this recommendation could require substantial discussion in specific national contexts, linked for example to the extent of consumption in different age groups”, highlights the UN agency for health.
The WHO NSS guideline is part of a series of existing and future guidance on healthy diets that aim to establish healthy eating habits throughout life, improve diet quality and reduce the risk of noncommunicable diseases worldwide.
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