The World Health Organization (WHO) has advised people not to consume nonsugar sweeteners if they are attempting to control their body weight.
The health agency said the latest recommendation is based on the “findings of a systematic review of the available evidence,” which it said suggests that nonsugar sweeteners—including acesulfame potassium, aspartame, advantame, cyclamate, neotame, saccharin, sucralose, stevia, and stevia derivatives—do not confer any long-term benefit to reduce body fat in adults and children.
According to the agency, the findings of the 283 unique studies that were reviewed also showed that there may be “potential undesirable effects” from the long-term use of these sweeteners, such as an increased risk of type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and mortality in adults.
The sweeteners also should not be used to reduce the risk of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), according to the WHO.
“Replacing free sugars with NSS does not help with weight control in the long term. People need to consider other ways to reduce free sugars intake, such as consuming food with naturally occurring sugars, like fruit, or unsweetened food and beverages,” said Francesco Branca, WHO director for nutrition and food safety.
“NSS are not essential dietary factors and have no nutritional value. People should reduce the sweetness of the diet altogether, starting early in life, to improve their health,” Branca added.
“Conditional recommendations are those recommendations for which the WHO guideline development group is less certain that the desirable consequences of implementing the recommendation outweigh the undesirable consequences or when the anticipated net benefits are very small,” the agency said.
Erythritol Linked to Increased Heart Attack Risk
The latest recommendation includes “all synthetic and naturally occurring or modified non-nutritive sweeteners that are not classified as sugars found in manufactured foods and beverages, or sold on their own to be added to foods and beverages by consumers.”However, it does not apply to people with preexisting diabetes, as the evidence reviewed did not contain extensive studies on such individuals.
In that study, researchers at the Cleveland Clinic studied over 4,000 individuals in the United States and Europe, analyzing small molecules, commonly known as metabolites, within their bloodstream. They found that those with higher levels of erythritol in their bloodstream were at an elevated risk of experiencing a major adverse cardiac event such as heart attack, stroke, or death within three years.
In preclinical studies, they also found evidence that erythritol increased blood clot formation.
However, the study authors noted that because patients who participated in the study showed a high prevalence of cardiovascular disease and traditional risk factors, “the translatability of our findings to the general population needs to be determined.”
Other experts also noted that the study only showed a correlation and not a relationship of cause and effect between erythritol consumption and the increased risk of a major adverse cardiac event.
Splenda Criticizes Recommendation
Multiple natural alternatives to refined sugar are available on the market, including date syrup and yacon root syrup, the latter of which is also high in antioxidants and potassium.Responding to the WHO’s recommendations in a May 23 statement, Ted Gelov, chairman and CEO of Splenda, insisted that Splenda is a “safe and effective alternative to sugar” and is recommended every day by health care professionals to help with weight loss and diabetes management.
Gelov pointed to the fact that the studies reviewed by the health agency did not include any persons with prediabetes and diabetes, which he noted account for nearly 50 percent of the American population.
“Sugar consumption leads to obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular issues,” he said. “A substantial body of scientific evidence shows that low- and no-calorie sweeteners provide effective and safe options to reduce sugar and calorie consumption.”
In its own statement on May 15, the International Sweeteners Association said “it is a disservice to not recognize the public health benefits of low/no calorie sweeteners” and that the association is disappointed that the WHO’s conclusions are “largely based on low certainty evidence from observational studies, which are at high risk of reverse causality.”
“The ISA believes this guideline should have been based on the comprehensive set of available evidence and interpreted considering the hierarchy and weight of scientific evidence,” the group said. “The WHO could only conclude a conditional recommendation, which is not scientifically rigorous, nor based on a robust evidence base or supported by the evidence presented in the WHO-commissioned systematic review itself.”
Copy
