Personalized microbiome-driven effects of non-nutritive sweeteners on human glucose tolerance.
Level 2 - randomized trial
Individual randomized controlled trial
PubMed 35987213 · doi:10.1016/j.cell.2022.07.016
What was done
Researchers conducted a randomized controlled trial in 120 healthy adults who received saccharin, sucralose, aspartame, or stevia sachets for 2 weeks at doses below the acceptable daily intake. These four intervention groups were compared against two control arms: one receiving the vehicle (glucose) and one receiving no supplement. Stool and oral microbiomes, plasma metabolomes, and glycemic responses were measured. Causality and mechanisms were evaluated by transplanting microbiomes from human top and bottom glycemic responders into gnotobiotic mice.
What was found
Each of the four non-nutritive sweeteners distinctly altered the composition of stool and oral microbiomes as well as the plasma metabolome. Saccharin and sucralose significantly impaired glycemic responses in humans, though the abstract reports no numerical effect sizes or confidence intervals. In gnotobiotic mice, fecal transplants reproduced the donor-specific glycemic responses, confirming that the glycemic impairments were microbiome-driven.
Why it matters
This trial demonstrates that non-nutritive sweeteners are not physiologically inert in humans and can drive individualized disruptions in glycemic tolerance via microbiome alterations.
Limits
The abstract provides no exact numerical values, effect sizes, or variance metrics. The intervention lasted only 2 weeks, was restricted to healthy adults, and did not evaluate long-term metabolic outcomes or clinical disease endpoints.
Cited by
- supports A preliminary small-scale study found that personalized glycemic responses to saccharin in humans occurred and were transferable to germ-free mice via microbiome transfer.
- supports Over 100,000 individuals have been tested on thousands of food components and food additives through the Personalized Nutrition pipeline.