Scientists studied the effects of the non-nutritive sweeteners sucralose and stevia on mice and found changes in the gut microbiome and gene expression that are partially passed on to subsequent generations. This may affect metabolic health, xrust emphasizes, in particular glucose tolerance.
Experimental technique
47 male and female mice, divided into three groups, took part in the work. The first group received plain water, the second received water with sucralose, and the third received stevia in doses comparable to typical human consumption. After this, the animals were bred into two successive generations (F1 and F2), which no longer received sweeteners and drank only pure water.
Each generation underwent an oral glucose tolerance test to assess insulin resistance. The researchers analyzed stool samples for microbiome composition and levels of short-chain fatty acids, and examined the expression of genes associated with inflammation, intestinal barrier function, and liver and intestinal metabolism.
Different effects of sucralose and stevia
The results showed that the effects of sweeteners varied and changed over time. In the first generation, impaired glucose tolerance was observed only in male offspring of mice treated with sucralose. By the second generation, elevated fasting blood sugar levels were recorded in males from the sucralose line and in females from the stevia line.
Animals exposed to both sweeteners had increased microbiome diversity but decreased concentrations of short-chain fatty acids, beneficial metabolites produced by bacteria. These changes were preserved in descendants. Sucralose caused more pronounced and persistent changes: an increase in pathogenic bacteria and a decrease in beneficial species.
Sucralose also had a stronger effect on gene expression—upregulating genes associated with inflammation and suppressing metabolic genes over two generations. Stevia exposure was less significant and was not passed on beyond one generation.
The need for further research
The authors of the study emphasize that the work revealed relationships, but does not establish a cause-and-effect relationship. Additionally, the effects in mice do not necessarily closely replicate the effects in humans.
“The purpose of this study is not to cause panic, but to highlight the need for further work,” the scientists noted. They call for more research to assess the long-term risks of regular human consumption of non-nutritive sweeteners.
Based on materials from https://www.news-medical.net
Xrust Popular sweeteners can affect the metabolism of offspring
