Neotame, a sweetener with significant sweetening power, can harm the health of intestinal bacteria. This can contribute to various health problems, including irritable bowel syndrome.
- Neotame is a sweetener with strong sweetening power.
- It can damage the intestinal microbiota.
- This can increase the risk of diseases including irritable bowel syndrome, according to the authors.
They give a sweet flavor to foods, without adding sugar or calories: sweeteners are used in the food industry for sugar-free or low-fat products. Neotame is one of them: it was approved in 2003 in the United States and in 2007 in Europe. Derived from aspartame, it has a sweetening power 30 to 60 times greater. But a study, published in Frontiers in Nutrition, shows that it can harm intestinal health.
Sweetener: what are the effects of neotame on the microbiota?
This work was carried out by researchers from Anglia Ruskin University, located in the United Kingdom. They have previously demonstrated that saccharin, sucralose and aspartame can have harmful consequences on gut health.
This time, the team was interested in neotame: with the help of an experiment in vitro, they observed the reactions of intestinal bacteria to the presence of the sweetener. This allowed them to identify a “range of pathogenic responses. The sweetener can break down the intestinal epithelium, the tissue inside the intestines. The test shows that some of the cells that make it up die and that the intestinal cells are damaged.
What are the consequences of the degradation of intestinal cells by neotame?
However, for the authors, this degradation of the microbiota can have different consequences on health. “Neotame’s impact on the epithelium-microbiota relationship can potentially lead to poor gut health, which could lead to metabolic and inflammatory diseases such as irritable bowel disease or insulin resistance.estimate the authors in a press release.
For Dr Havovi Cichger, the lead author of this study, the risks are multiple. “This can lead to a range of health problems, including diarrhea, intestinal inflammation, and even infections such as sepsis if the bacteria enters the bloodstream.”he believes.
Sweeteners: better understand their effects on health
The specialist believes that it is essential to know the impact of changes occurring in the intestinal microbiota.
“Our results also demonstrate the need for a broader understanding of common food additives and the underlying molecular mechanisms.”he continues.
While he recognizes the benefit of these products for weight loss, glucose intolerance or type 2 diabetes, he insists on the need to conduct studies on more recent sweeteners with still little-known effects.
