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How Low-Calorie Sweeteners Interact with the Gut Microbiota

Understand what happens to low-calorie sweeteners after consuming them and how they may potentially interact with gut microbiota.

Key Topics Covered
  • What happens to low-calorie sweeteners after consumption
  • Potential interactions between low-calorie sweeteners and gut microbiota

What are low-calorie sweeteners?


Low-calorie sweeteners (LCS) are ingredients often added to foods and beverages in place of sugars, providing a similarly sweet taste but with less (or zero) calories. Sugars are several hundred times less sweet than LCS, so less LCS are required to achieve a level of sweetness similar to sugars. This may be useful for people who enjoy the taste of sweetness, but who want to limit their intake of sugars and calories. 1


LCS can be classified as zero-calorie or low-calorie sugar alternatives. 2-4

 

Types of Zero-calorie Sweeteners

 

  • Acesulfame K
  • Sucralose
  • Stevia
  • Monk Fruit
  • Saccharin

 

Types of Low-calorie Sweeteners

 

  • Aspartame
  • Erythritol
  • Thaumatin


What are the gut microbiota?


The gut microbiota play a key role in human health and disease. The gut microbiota consist of the microorganisms that live within our digestive tracts. The presence and variety of microorganisms that live in our gut are unique to each person and can be influenced by what we eat and drink. 5

 

How do low-calorie sweeteners interact with our gut? 6-15

 

  1. After consuming LCS, they enter the digestive tract. Most are absorbed in the small intestine.
  2. If LCS are not absorbed in the small intestine, they will move further down the digestive tract to the colon.
  3. If LCS reach the colon, they may interact with the gut microbiota

 

How might Low-calorie Sweeteners like Aspartame, Saccharin, Acesulfame K, Erythritol, & Thaumatin affect my gut microbiota?

 

  • These LCS are absorbed in the small intestine, before reaching the colon (where the gut microbiota live). 8-10, 14, 15
  • Because these LCS are absorbed before interacting with the gut microbiota, it is unlikely that they influence the gut microbiota significantly. 8-10, 14, 15
  • The evidence that LCS adversely affect the gut microbiota is inconclusive at this time. 16-18

 

How might Low-calorie Sweeteners like Sucralose, Stevia, & Monk Fruit affect my gut microbiota?

 

  • These LCS are not absorbed in the small intestine, so they may come into contact with the gut microbiota. 6, 7, 11-13
  • Most studies investigating the effects of these LCS have been conducted in animals, not humans. 19
  • Although they may interact with the gut microbiota, a definitive link between LCS and adverse effects on the gut microbiota has not been established. 20 - 22

 

More human clinical research is needed to understand the relationship between LCS and the gut microbiota, since most studies have limitations, are not conducted in humans, investigate LCS in an amount that is higher than typical human consumption, and cannot be generalized to the entire population. 16,23


Click the link to the right to download the handout to use with your patients and clients!

 

References
  1. Microbiome. (2019). International Scientific Association for Probiotics and Prebiotics. https://isappscience.org/for-scientists/resources/microbiome/#:%7E:text=The%20word%20microbiome%20generally%20refers
  2. What are low / no calorie sweeteners? International Sweeteners Association. https://www.sweeteners.org/what-are-low-no-calori-sweeteners/#:%7E:text=The%20most%20known%20and%20commonly,saccharin%
  3. The Lowdown on Sugar Substitutes. (2019, November 30). Institute of Food Technologists. https://www.ift.org/news-and-publications/blog/2019/november/the-lowdown-on-sugar-substitutes
  4. Monk Fruit Sweeteners. (2014, May). International Food Information Council. https://foodinsight.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/Monk-Fruit-Low-Calorie-Sweetener-Fact-Sheet.pdf
  5. Bhattacharya, S. (2023). Snack Foods Processing and Technology, Ch. 9, pages 211-249. Academic Press. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-819759-2.00003-3.
  6. Roberts, A., Renwick, A., Sims, J., & Snodin, D. (2000). Sucralose metabolism and pharmacokinetics in man. Food and chemical toxicology, 38, 31-41.
  7. Magnuson, B. A., Carakostas, M. C., Moore, N. H., Poulos, S. P., & Renwick, A. G. (2016). Biological fate of low-calorie sweeteners. Nutrition Reviews, 74(11), 670-689.
  8. Lobach, A. R., Roberts, A., & Rowland, I. R. (2019). Assessing the in vivo data on low/no-calorie sweeteners and the gut microbiota. Food and chemical toxicology, 124, 385-399.
  9. Byard, J., McChesney, E., Golberg, L., & Coulston, F. (1974). Excretion and metabolism of saccharin in man. II. Studies with 14C-labelled and unlabelled saccharin. Food and cosmetics toxicology, 12(2), 175-184.
  10. Renwick, A. (1985). The disposition of saccharin in animals and man—a review. Food and chemical toxicology, 23(4-5), 429-435.
  11. Koyama, E., Kitazawa, K., Ohori, Y., Izawa, O., Kakegawa, K., Fujino, A., & Ui, M. (2003). In vitro metabolism of the glycosidic sweeteners, stevia mixture and enzymatically modified stevia in human intestinal microflora. Food and chemical toxicology, 41(3), 359-374.
  12. Wheeler, A., Boileau, A., Winkler, P., Compton, J., Prakash, I., Jiang, X., & Mandarino, D. (2008). Pharmacokinetics of rebaudioside A and stevioside after single oral doses in healthy men. Food and chemical toxicology, 46(7), S54-S60.
  13. Xu, F., Li, D.-P., Huang, Z.-C., Lu, F.-L., Wang, L., Huang, Y.-L., Wang, R.-F., Liu, G.-X., Shang, M.-Y., & Cai, S.-Q. (2015). Exploring in vitro, in vivo metabolism of mogroside V and distribution of its metabolites in rats by HPLC-ESI-IT-TOF-MSn. Journal of pharmaceutical and biomedical analysis, 115, 418-430.
  14. Erickson, R. H., & Kim, Y. S. (1990). Digestion and absorption of dietary protein. Annual review of medicine, 41(1), 133-139.
  15. Ruiz-Ojeda, F. J., Plaza-Díaz, J., Sáez-Lara, M. J., & Gil, A. (2019). Effects of sweeteners on the gut microbiota: a review of experimental studies and clinical trials. Advances in nutrition, 10(suppl_1), S31-S48.
  16. International Food Information Council Foundation. (2018). Gut check low calorie sweeteners and the gut microbiome. https://foodinsight.org/gut-check-low-calorie-sweeteners-and-the-gut-microbiome/
  17. International Food Information Council Foundation. (2021a). Everything you need to know about aspartame. https://foodinsight.org/everything-you-need-to-know-about-aspartame/
  18. Plaza-Diaz, J., Pastor-Villaescusa, B., Rueda-Robles, A., Abadia-Molina, F., & Ruiz-Ojeda, F. J. (2020). Plausible biological interactions of low-and non-calorie sweeteners with the intestinal microbiota: an update of recent studies. Nutrients, 12(4), 1153.
  19. Schiffman, S. S., & Nagle, H. T. (2019). Revisited: Assessing the in vivo data on low/no-calorie sweeteners and the gut microbiota. Food and chemical toxicology, 132, 110692.
  20. International Food Information Council Foundation. (2021d). Everything you need to know about sucralose. https://foodinsight.org/everything-you-need-to-know-about-sucralose/
  21. International Food Information Council Foundation. (2021b). Everything You Need To Know About Monk Fruit Sweeteners. https://foodinsight.org/everything-you-need-to-know-about-monk-fruit-sweeteners/
  22. International Food Information Council Foundation. (2021c). Everything you need to know about stevia sweeteners. https://foodinsight.org/everything-you-need-to-know-about-stevia-sweeteners/
  23. Hughes, R. L., Davis, C. D., Lobach, A., &amp; Holscher, H. D. (2021). An Overview of Current Knowledge of the Gut Microbiota and Low-Calorie Sweeteners. Nutrition Today, 56(3), 105-113.
 

 

How Low-Calorie Sweeteners Interact with the Gut Microbiota Infographic
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