Prelim study from Cleveland Clinic suggests artificial sweetener worse than sugar

[thewayne]

The study concerned a "sugar alcohol" that is commonly used in keto-friendly foods as a sugar replacement, and found some nastiness associated with it. It was a small study, with only 20 people enrolled, but the results were telling, the phrase "worrisome cardiovascular effects" is mentioned..

"Earlier studies from Hazen’s lab — one published last year and the other in June — found potential links between the sugar alcohols and an increased risk of heart attacks and strokes. The research suggested both sugar alcohols might make blood platelets stickier and therefore more susceptible to clotting and blocking veins or arteries, in turn contributing to heart attacks and strokes.

For the new research, Hazen’s team analyzed the heart effects of erythritol and regular sugar — in this case, simple glucose — by enrolling two groups of healthy middle-aged male and female volunteers: 10 who consumed the erythritol and 10 who consumed sugar.

Both groups fasted overnight. In the morning, their blood was drawn to measure platelet activity. Then, half the volunteers drank glasses of water with 30 grams of glucose mixed in, and half drank glasses of water with 30 grams of erythritol. Hazen said 30 grams of erythritol is an amount typical of erythritol-sweetened foods.

Around 30 minutes after each group consumed the sweetened drinks, their blood was drawn and retested. Researchers found the people who consumed erythritol had increased platelet aggregation — meaning the blood was more likely to clot. Adults who drank the normal sugar drink had no changes in platelet aggregation.

The researchers measured a 1,000-fold increase in blood erythritol levels in the group given the erythritol drink. Those who drank glucose water didn’t have any changes in blood erythritol levels, and their blood glucose levels were only slightly increased. The finding stood out to Hazen, because it far exceeded the trace levels of erythritol that occur naturally in the blood.

“The amount in sugar substitutes is thousands of folds higher than what is made in our bodies, so to call it ‘natural,’ it’s not,” he said. “Your best recommendation is to avoid the sugar substitutes, and sugar alcohols in particular, because there’s an acute increase in the likelihood of clotting events once you ingest them.”

Obviously if you're diabetic, you have special concerns. Myself, I avoid artificial sweeteners and don't use a lot of sugar. Yes, I make ice cream, but only once or twice a month. I don't make other types of desserts very often either.

https://www.nbcnews.com/health/heart-health/common-low-calorie-sweetener-may-riskier-heart-sugar-study-suggests-rcna165655

https://science.slashdot.org/story/24/08/08/1748237/common-low-calorie-sweetener-may-be-riskier-for-the-heart-than-sugar-study-suggests

Comments

[disneydream06]

I see a trend, fake things are not better then the real thing.
Didn't they decide that butter was better then margarine as well?
Hugs, Jon

[thewayne]

Margarine is one molecule off from PLASTIC.  I've never used the stuff, could never stand the taste.  I've always used butter in cooking and baking.

[disneydream06]

I use butter when I am baking for sure. :)
I am using very little now especially now that am not eating bread for the time being. :o

[dewline]

"No, you're not gonna be allowed to escape self-harming through your diets! We aren't putting up with that!"

[thewayne]

That seems to be the size of that.  I radically cut down my soda intake in the early '90s and switched to drinking water, then again after I married and moved up here and switched to unsweetened tea.  Initially I was using an artificial sweetener, then just stopped that entirely.  Fortunately no ill effects.

[silveradept]

It also seems like a thing that should have been studied before any such product should have been brought to market. After all, if you're going to be claiming that your product is better than sugar and has fewer bad effects than that, it would make sense to have some real data to back that up, more than just studied done and funded by a company that wants to bring the product to market.

[thewayne]

But... then we might not be able to put our additives in food!  This is one of the reasons that we'd like to move to Europe: better consumer protection laws when it comes to food products.

[disneydream06]

Question for you...
Can you leave butter out of the fridge?
Otherwise it's to hard to spread.
I tried some "soft" butter one time and it wasn't any softer then regular butter.
Just more expensive. lol.......
Hugs, Jon

[thewayne]

Yes.  Butter does not need to be refrigerated, in fact they make special ceramic crocks to keep bugs away from it and to keep it somewhat cool.

[disneydream06]

Now the question is, do I use it enough to bother. LOL...

[moonhare]

Back in my day it was calcium cyclamate that was banned. Pretty much every sugar substitute since has been found to be dangerous.

[thewayne]

Yep, that's been what I've noticed.  Stick with the real stuff.

[darkoshi]

I recently determined that some sugar-free chocolate chips (which contain erythritol - I just checked the ingredients) taste fairly good, and thought that was a good way to cut down a small portion of my sugar consumption. Not in place of all my chocolate, just some of it occasionally. So that is disappointing to hear about the erythritol. On top of wondering how bad I'm poisoning myself with lead and cadmium whenever I eat chocolate.

[thewayne]

Yeah, I heard about that lead/cadmium thing.  I figure, if you're going to die, die happy. 

[delibby]

I keep waiting for sucralose to be found 'bad.' It's used in so many things and it's the one I react badly to. The rest are a little easier to avoid by mostly staying away from diet foods.

Use real sugar
Use real butter
Don't add salt

[thewayne]

Completely agree on the butter and sugar, though I think using salt is okay as long as you don't use too much.  Requires a delicate hand and experience.

[delibby]

Bad kidneys. But also, I think food just has so much salt in it that there's just no need to add more.