Sweetener erythritol is linked to weight gain, study finds

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Have you ever heard of erythritol? This complicatedly named sweetener is naturally found in many foods, such as pears and watermelons, and is widely used in industry to replace sugar in reduced-calorie products. Just like xylitol and stevia, the substance has been gaining fame among those seeking to adopt healthier habits.

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But maybe it’s still too early to give erythritol a free pass in your lunch box. According to a study published on May 8 in the scientific journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciencesthis sweetener is not only found in what we eat, it is also produced by the body – and seems to be an important marker for weight gain.

To conduct the work, scientists from Cornell University, in the United States, joined researchers from institutions in several countries to analyze 172 students who were in their first year of graduation. Data on participants were collected at the beginning and end of the academic year and included questionnaires, body measurements, x-rays, fat and lean mass indices, and blood samples.

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The researchers noted that volunteers who added more kilos and abdominal fat over 12 months had, at the beginning of the study, blood levels of erythritol fifteen times higher than those who lost weight or maintained their shape.

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The finding is not only due to the ingestion of the substance, but also to the fact that it is produced by the body, according to the scientists’ findings. “Erythritol is not consumed and eliminated from the body unchanged; it has an impact on metabolism. This finding is in contrast to what was believed”, comments Karsten Hiller, one of the authors of the article.

The idea of ​​scholars, now, is to deepen the investigations to understand the relationship between the sweetener and the rise of the pointer on the scale. “It remains unclear whether erythritol production and/or exposure to erythritol-containing foods contribute to weight gain,” the authors ponder.