JAMA Netw Open: Sugar-free beverages increase the desire for food in women and obese people, which is not conducive to weight loss

With economic development and the improvement of living standards, obesity has become a major public health problem worldwide
.

In fact, obesity is not only a feature, but also a disease.

In order to reduce the impact of sugar on health and obesity, more and more people are starting to consume artificial sweeteners instead of normal sugars (sugar substitutes).

However, the health effects of artificial sweeteners are still very controversial, and their effects on appetite, glucose metabolism and body weight have not yet formed a clear consensus

On September 28, 2021, researchers from the University of Southern California published an article titled: Obesity and Sex-Related Associations With Differential Effects of Sucralose vs Sucrose on Appetite and Reward Processing A Randomized Crossover Trial in JAMA Network Open.

The results of this study on the effect of artificial sweeteners on human brain activity and appetite show that beverages containing artificial sweetener sucralose may increase the appetite of women and obese people

The corresponding author of the study and associate professor Kathleen Page of the University of Southern California said that many people now use artificial sweeteners to help lose weight, but this is controversial.

In order to uncover the reasons behind these conflicting research results, the research team conducted a new experiment.

Note: Sucralose is a widely used artificial sweetener, which has the characteristics of no energy, high sweetness, and pure sweetness

These participants are men and women, including healthy weight, overweight and obesity, in order to study the impact of artificial sweeteners on different populations

During the two hours after drinking, the research team conducted three tests or records:

1.

2.

3.

Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) studies have shown that compared with drinks containing real sugar, women and obese people have increased activity in the brain areas responsible for appetite after drinking beverages containing sucralose

The study also showed that, compared with beverages containing real sugar, after the participants drank sucralose-containing beverages, the hormones related to satiety decreased overall, indicating that beverages with artificial sweeteners may not be effective in suppressing Hunger

In addition, after the female participants drank sucralose-containing beverages, they ate more in the snack buffet, while there was no difference in the food intake of the male participants
.

The research team said that through the study of different populations, these results show that artificial sweeteners have an impact on human nerves and behavior.
Women and obese people may be more sensitive to artificial sweeteners.
They drink artificial sweeteners.
Drinks may induce hunger in the brain, leading to more calorie intake, which is obviously not conducive to weight loss
.

This study also reminds us that the popular sugar-free beverages that use artificial sweeteners may not be a good choice for weight loss.
They may even increase appetite and cause weight gain
.

Original source:

Alexandra G.
Yunker, et al.
Obesity and Sex-Related Associations With Differential Effects of Sucralose vs Sucrose on Appetite and Reward Processing.
A Randomized Crossover Trial .
JAMA Netw Open.
2021; 4(9): e2126313.