Do you prefer low-fat yogurts and other so-called “light” food products? The sweeteners used in these products increase the risk of cardiovascular disease.
Sweeteners in low-fat dairy products
A large French study was conducted with 103,388 volunteers. This study is called NutriNet-Santé. She studies l’impact of all the food additives including sweeteners, very present in dairy products and so-called “light” foods. The researchers analyzed the eating habits of these volunteers from 2009 to 2021.
How do you know if a product contains a sweetener?
Sweeteners have a sweet taste, less calories than sugar (called sucrose). Those are chemical food additives or of vegetable origin. You can tell if you are consuming sweeteners by looking on the label for the list of ingredients starting with E. These are, for example:
- the sorbitol (E 420),
- mannitol (E 421),
- the xylitol (E 967).
- l’aspartame (E 951),
- the saccharine (E 954),
- les cyclamates (E 952).
What are the risks ?
The researchers established a lien between consumption sweeteners and the risk of cardiovascular illnesses : heart attack, stroke or hypertension. “Those who initially consumed more sweeteners had, over time, a greater risk of developing cardiovascular disease,” explains Mathilde Touvier to France info. She is director of research at Inserm and coordinator of the study. A lien had already been established between beverages containing l’aspartame and the cardiovascular health.
Should all low-fat products be eliminated?
It’s all regarding balance. “Consuming sweeteners from time to time will not be dangerous for your health”, specifies Mathilde Touvier to FranceInfo. By qualifying: “sugars are not better than sweeteners. The recommendations of the health authorities are to try globally to limit the sweet taste in food, so both sugar and aspartame.”
Source : FranceInfo
