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Effects of Non-nutritive Sweeteners on Energy Intake and Human Health

A special issue of Nutrients (ISSN 2072-6643). This special issue belongs to the section "Nutrition and Metabolism".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (16 July 2023) | Viewed by 14772

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Faculty of Medicine, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
Interests: metabolic changes in obesity; links between obesity metabolism and intestinal microbiome; GLP-1 and GI hormones
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

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Guest Editor
1. St. Clara Research at St. Claraspital Basel, Basel, Switzerland
2. Department of Clinical Research, Faculty of Medicine, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
Interests: nutritional physiology and medicine; metabolic changes in obesity; appetite control/regulation of satiety; gastrointestinal hormones; taste perception; gut-brain-axis
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Around 30% of the global population are overweight or obese, an important risk factor for non-communicable diseases, such as cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes mellitus. Several studies report a positive correlation between the number of sugar-sweetened beverages and adverse health effects, such as cardiovascular and metabolic disease. Based on these findings, the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends a reduction in sugar intake. Replacing sugar with artificial low-calorie sweeteners, such as sucralose or acesulfame-K, has been proposed for decades with the aim to reduce energy intake while at the same time preserving sweet taste. The role of these artificial low-calorie sweeteners and their impact on health and disease is, however, highly debated. Although different compounds are approved for human use and considered safe from a toxicological perspective, their short- and long-term impacts, including benefits on chronic disease risk, remain uncertain.

Various public policies were recently undertaken in different countries in the hope of reducing sugar-sweetened beverage consumption amongst their population. This has led the food industries to promote low-calorie sweeteners (sugar substitutes) as a healthy alternative that would limit calorie intake without compromising the sweet taste of food and beverages. To date it is still uncertain, if the use of low-calorie sweeteners as a strategy of limiting or reducing energy intake is safe and without consequences for our health.

This Special Issue of Nutrition aims to collect the latest research on the links between the effects of low-calorie sweeteners consumption and health, increased cardiovascular risk and metabolic disease and present the latest evidence on the role of their use to ameliorate these conditions.

Prof. Dr. Christoph Beglinger
Dr. Anne Christin Meyer-Gerspach
Guest Editors

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

20 pages, 5007 KiB  
Article
Non-Nutritive Sweeteners Acesulfame Potassium and Sucralose Are Competitive Inhibitors of the Human P-glycoprotein/Multidrug Resistance Protein 1 (PGP/MDR1)
by Laura Danner, Florian Malard, Raquel Valdes and Stephanie Olivier-Van Stichelen
Nutrients 2023, 15(5), 1118; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu15051118 - 23 Feb 2023
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 4503
Abstract
Non-nutritive sweeteners (NNS) are popular sugar replacements used in foods, beverages, and medications. Although NNS are considered safe by regulatory organizations, their effects on physiological processes such as detoxification are incompletely understood. Previous studies revealed that the NNS sucralose (Sucr) altered P-glycoprotein (PGP) [...] Read more.
Non-nutritive sweeteners (NNS) are popular sugar replacements used in foods, beverages, and medications. Although NNS are considered safe by regulatory organizations, their effects on physiological processes such as detoxification are incompletely understood. Previous studies revealed that the NNS sucralose (Sucr) altered P-glycoprotein (PGP) expression in rat colon. We also demonstrated that early-life exposure to NNS Sucr and acesulfame potassium (AceK) compromises mouse liver detoxification. Building upon these initial discoveries, we investigated the impact of AceK and Sucr on the PGP transporter in human cells to assess whether NNS influence its key role in cellular detoxification and drug metabolism. We showed that AceK and Sucr acted as PGP inhibitors, competing for the natural substrate-binding pocket of PGP. Most importantly, this was observed after exposure to concentrations of NNS within expected levels from common foods and beverage consumption. This may suggest risks for NNS consumers, either when taking medications that require PGP as the primary detoxification transporter or during exposure to toxic compounds. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Non-nutritive Sweeteners on Energy Intake and Human Health)
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13 pages, 1750 KiB  
Article
Metabolic Effects and Safety Aspects of Acute D-allulose and Erythritol Administration in Healthy Subjects
by Fabienne Teysseire, Valentine Bordier, Aleksandra Budzinska, Lukas Van Oudenhove, Nathalie Weltens, Christoph Beglinger, Bettina K. Wölnerhanssen and Anne Christin Meyer-Gerspach
Nutrients 2023, 15(2), 458; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu15020458 - 15 Jan 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 7149
Abstract
The rapid increase in sugar consumption is associated with various negative metabolic and inflammatory effects; therefore, alternative sweeteners become of interest. The aim of this study was to investigate the metabolic effects and safety aspects of acute D-allulose and erythritol on glucose, insulin, [...] Read more.
The rapid increase in sugar consumption is associated with various negative metabolic and inflammatory effects; therefore, alternative sweeteners become of interest. The aim of this study was to investigate the metabolic effects and safety aspects of acute D-allulose and erythritol on glucose, insulin, ghrelin, blood lipids, uric acid, and high-sensitive C-reactive protein (hsCRP). In three study visits, 18 healthy subjects received an intragastric administration of 25 g D-allulose or 50 g erythritol, or 300 mL tap water (placebo) in a randomized, double-blind and crossover order. To measure the aforementioned parameters, blood samples were drawn at fixed time intervals. Glucose and insulin concentrations were lower after D-allulose compared to tap water (p = 0.001, dz = 0.91 and p = 0.005, dz = 0.58, respectively); however, Bayesian models show no difference for insulin in response to D-allulose compared to tap water, and there was no effect after erythritol. An exploratory analysis showed that ghrelin concentrations were reduced after erythritol compared to tap water (p = 0.026, dz = 0.59), with no effect after D-allulose; in addition, both sweeteners had no effect on blood lipids, uric acid and hsCRP. This combination of properties identifies both sweeteners as excellent candidates for effective and safe sugar alternatives. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Non-nutritive Sweeteners on Energy Intake and Human Health)
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21 pages, 2559 KiB  
Article
Mapping the Homeostatic and Hedonic Brain Responses to Stevia Compared to Caloric Sweeteners and Water: A Double-Blind Randomised Controlled Crossover Trial in Healthy Adults
by Nikoleta S. Stamataki, Shane Mckie, Corey Scott, Douwina Bosscher, Rebecca Elliott and John T. McLaughlin
Nutrients 2022, 14(19), 4172; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu14194172 - 7 Oct 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2277
Abstract
Non-nutritive sweeteners have potential effects on brain function. We investigated neural correlates of responses to beverages differing in sweetness and calories. Healthy participants completed 4 randomised sessions: water vs. water with stevia, glucose, or maltodextrin. Blood-oxygenation level-dependent (BOLD) contrast was monitored for 30 [...] Read more.
Non-nutritive sweeteners have potential effects on brain function. We investigated neural correlates of responses to beverages differing in sweetness and calories. Healthy participants completed 4 randomised sessions: water vs. water with stevia, glucose, or maltodextrin. Blood-oxygenation level-dependent (BOLD) contrast was monitored for 30 min post-ingestion by functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging. A food visual probe task at baseline was repeated at 30 min. A significant interaction of taste-by-calories-by-time was demonstrated mainly in motor, frontal, and insula cortices. Consumption of the stevia-sweetened beverage resulted in greater BOLD decrease, especially in the 20–30 min period, compared to other beverages. There was a significant interaction of taste-by-time in BOLD response in gustatory and reward areas; sweet beverages induced greater reduction in BOLD compared to non-sweet. The interaction calories-by-time showed significantly greater incremental area under the curve in thalamic, visual, frontal, and parietal areas for glucose and maltodextrin 10–20 min post-consumption only, compared to water. In the visual cue task, the water demonstrated an increased response in the visual cortex to food images post-consumption; however, no difference was observed for the three sweet/caloric beverages. In conclusion, both sweet taste and calories exert modulatory effects, but stevia showed a more robust and prolonged effect. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Non-nutritive Sweeteners on Energy Intake and Human Health)
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