Non-Nutritive Sweeteners and Their Contradictory Effect on the Control of Energetic and Glycemic Homeostasis

Abstract

Non-nutritive sweeteners (NNSs) gained attention as dietary tools that provide a free sweet taste of energy to foods. However, its health benefits have been questioned. The aim of this review is to present and discuss the effects of NNSs on energy and glycemic homeostasis, as well as the mechanisms involved. Recent studies in animals and humans have shown that consumption of NNSs appears to have a negative effect on the energy and glycemic homeostasis, promoting body weight gain, insulin resistance, and hyperglycemia. The hypotheses proposed to explain these effects are changes in the perception of taste sweet and weakening of the cephalic response, interaction of NNSs with sweet-taste receptors in the intestinal tract, and changes in intestinal microbiota. However, the determinants of energy and glucose homeostasis are diverse, which may explain in part the unclear effects evidenced in many studies. Therefore, other studies are important to clarify the conflicts between the safety of NNSs and metabolic disorders.

Comparative effects of commonly used commercially available non‐nutritive sweeteners on diabetes‐related parameters in non‐diabetic rats

“…The use of sugar substitutes, such as NNS is increasingly becoming a welcomed approach to curtail detrimental calorie intake (Brown et al., 2011; Brown et al, 2010; Burke & Small, 2015). However, most consumers are still bewildered concerning the effects of NNS on appetite, food intake, and body weight, perhaps due to controversial reports emanating from various studies (Purohit & Mishra, 2018; Romo‐Romo et al., 2016; Silva, Brasiel, & Luquetti, 2019).…”

“…However, most consumers are still bewildered concerning the effects of NNS on appetite, food intake, and body weight, perhaps due to controversial reports emanating from various studies (Purohit & Mishra, 2018;Romo-Romo et al, 2016;Silva, Brasiel, & Luquetti, 2019).…”

Sweetening Agents and Sweeteners in Dietary Supplements for Children-Analysis of the Polish Market

“…Acesulfame K (ace-K) is equally rarely met in dietary supplements for children—only 3.15% of products contained ace-K (each time in combination with sucralose or aspartame). Ace-K demonstrates its sweet flavour in a narrow range of concentrations only; if the concentration limits are exceeded, a bitter or metallic aftertaste can be felt, which limits its use [ 55 ]. A decidedly wider application to DS manufacturing technology was shown by sucralose, which occurred among the ingredients of 10.48% products (where a synergy effect caused by combinations of appropriate polyols and high-intensity sweeteners was also used) [ 50 ].…”

Consumption of low-calorie sweeteners: findings from the Campinas Nutrition and Health Survey

“…Recent national estimates from Brazil also show that 8•5 % of the population report using tabletop sweeteners (14) . Although older adults and individuals with a higher Body Mass Index (BMI) or diabetes are more likely to consume LCS (15)(16)(17) , a growing body of evidence has shown that LCS can have a contradictory effect on weight loss and glucose control (18,19) . In fact, saccharin and aspartame appear to be associated with increased gut production of bacteria associated with weight gain, and sucralose and saccharin might lead to inflammation and compromise the insulin response to sugar intake (20) .…”