HealthScience DailyScientists tested 39 sweeteners and uncovered surprising gut effects
A lab study found that about three-quarters of 39 common sweeteners altered gut bacteria, with one sweetener combined with an antidepressant producing particularly strong effects.
Scientists have discovered that many common sweeteners can interfere with gut bacteria, with some combinations involving medications producing surprisingly strong effects. One sweetener mixed with a widely prescribed antidepressant reduced beneficial bacteria and microbial diversity in laboratory experiments, raising new questions about potential effects on gut health and immunity.
Researchers tested 39 sweeteners against 25 species of gut bacteria and found most sweeteners disrupted at least one bacterial species linked to digestive health.
The sweetener isosteviol combined with the antidepressant duloxetine strongly suppressed two key gut bacteria and disrupted a simulated gut microbiome, the study found.
The researchers stress the experiments were done in a lab, not in humans, and further studies are needed before drawing conclusions about real-world health effects.
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