United States: Experts link sucrose artificial sweetener (brought to market as Splenda) to yet another possible health issue that affects brain functioning rather than gut health.
As per experts, sucralose is six hundred times sweeter than sucrose; however, it has zero calorie intake. As the author explains, this may create “a mismatch between the expectation of caloric intake and the absence of actual energy.”
“If your body is expecting a calorie because of the sweetness but doesn’t get the calorie it’s expecting, that could change the way the brain is primed to crave those substances over time,” as warned by a supervisor of the study, endocrinologist Kathleen Alanna Page from the University of Southern California.
More about the news
Those involved in the recent trial underwent three different treatments, according to which they received blood tests and brain imaging before and after.
The participants ranged from 18 to 35 years old and totaled 75 individuals. The participants consumed sucralose-containing beverages during one session.
The partakers consumed a sucrose-based drink on their second testing session. They consumed a glass of water after drinking each beverage in a different session.
All drinks utilized unsweetened cherry flavors, making it impossible for participants to determine any differences between the contents.
The participants functioned as their only measure of comparison. The scientists chose a different drink sequence for each study subject based on randomization.
They allowed up to two months between study sessions for each participant.
When people consume beverages with sucralose instead of real sugar, their peripheral glucose level and hormones, including insulin and glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1), do not rise to control blood sugar levels.
“The body uses these hormones to tell the brain you’ve consumed calories, in order to decrease hunger,” as stated by Page.
“Sucralose did not have that effect – and the differences in hormone responses to sucralose compared to sugar were even more pronounced in participants with obesity,” Page added.
The data indicates that brain signals function in direct connection with related metabolic body signals.
Electrochemical interactions between sucralose and gut microbes, according to previous studies, often result in reduced glucose response capabilities of the body.
The research findings of an unconventional hypothalamic response possibly benefit from these observations.
The initial assessment of Splenda as biologically inert factored into its popularity as a sugar substitute in diet drinks and chewing gum until scientists connected it to DNA damage as well as glucose tolerance impairments and gut microbial modifications.
Research about sucralose consumption gained new relevance after a two-year period since the World Health Organization issued a health alert about potential metabolic and inflammatory effects.
“Are these substances leading to changes in the developing brains of children who are at risk for obesity?” as stated by Page.
“The brain is vulnerable during this time, so it could be a critical opportunity to intervene,” the expert continued.