A widely used artificial sweetener may be associated with a higher risk of heart attacks and strokes, according to a major new study.
Researchers reported that people with higher consumption or blood levels of xylitol — a sugar substitute commonly found in diet foods, low-calorie drinks, chewing gum and toothpaste — were up to 57 percent more likely to experience serious cardiovascular events. The study tracked more than 17,000 participants across Canada and the UK over a 30-year period.
The findings, presented by scientists this week, showed that in the Canadian group, “the risk of a major adverse cardiovascular event was 57 percent higher in those with the highest levels vs. the lowest levels” of xylitol. In the UK cohort, based in Norfolk, the “risk of major adverse cardiovascular events was 18 percent higher in those with the highest levels vs. the lowest levels.”
The results have led experts to suggest a clear pattern: the higher the level of xylitol in the blood, the greater the rate of cardiovascular events.
“Artificial sweeteners are consumed by people who think they are healthier than sugar and they are generally regarded as safe by regulatory agencies,” said Dr Marco Witkowski, of Charité University Hospital in Berlin.
Xylitol was first identified in 1891 and became widely manufactured in the 1960s. It has remained a popular sweetener because it is a sugar alcohol, meaning it delivers a sweet taste without the same calorie content as regular sugar — a key reason it is often used in diet products.
Yet despite its common use in everyday products, researchers say its long-term impact on cardiovascular health has not previously been closely examined.
Dr Witkowski added: “Our long-term findings in the general population highlight how little we know about the cardiovascular safety of xylitol and indicate that further studies are warranted, especially as the amount of xylitol in products continues to increase.”
Prof Dan Atar agreed more work needs to be done to understand the impacts of the sweeteners. He said: “Artificial sweeteners are widely embraced by modern society, and the safety ratings had been good and granted by regulatory authorities.
“In this observational work, however, it appears that xylitol has a negative long-term effect on cardiovascular events in the general population. As with all observational studies, causalities are difficult to infer, but this work shows that further studies are mandated into this societally important topic.”
