6 popular sugar substitutes linked to faster brain aging: study

Sugar-free foods and beverages may help your waistline, but they could come at a cost to your brain.A study from the University of São Paulo in Brazil suggests that artificial sweeteners may speed up cognitive decline — with two groups appearing to face the greatest risk, including people with a disease affecting more than 40 million Americans.“Low- and no-calorie sweeteners are often seen as a healthy alternative to sugar, however our findings suggest certain sweeteners may have negative effects on brain health over time,” study author Dr.Claudia Kimie Suemoto said in a press release.The researchers focused on seven popular sweeteners in particular: aspartame, saccharin, acesulfame K, erythritol, xylitol, sorbitol and tagatose.These are commonly added to ultra-processed products marketed as low in calories.

Many are also sold separately for use in coffee, tea, cooking and baking.Aspartame, for example, is found in products like Diet Coke, Diet Pepsi and some sugar-free gums.Acesulfame K is commonly used in diet drinks and low-calorie products, while erythritol is a staple in many keto-friendly and low-carb foods.

Saccharin is the primary ingredient in Sweet’N Low.In the study, six of these sweeteners were associated with faster declines in overall mental performance — particularly memory-related measures.Notably, tagatose was the only one studied that wasn’t linked to faster decline.Suemoto and her colleagues followed nearly 13,000 52-year-olds living across Brazil for eight years.They were divided into three groups based on their total reported sweetener intake.

The lowest-intake group averaged about 20 milligrams of sweeteners per day, while the highest-intake group averaged 191 milligrams daily.Throughout the study, the participants took a series of tests measuring mental performance, including how quickly they could recall words, use their short-term memory and process information.The results? People who consumed the most sweeteners experienced ...