Sucralose, which replaces sugar in many food products, can increase hunger rather than helping weight loss as it promises.
A new study by the University of Southern California in Nature Metabolism It examined the way the popular artificial sweetener affects brain activity, hormones and the feeling of hunger compared to sugar and water.
Sucralose, usually found in dietary beverages and “zero sugars” snacks, It is about 600 times sweeter than sugarbut does not add calories. Despite being marketed as a weight -friendly alternative, the study indicates that it can trigger brain responses that increase desires and reduce the feeling of satiety.
The investigation involved 75 participants from different body weights. In a controlled environment, each participant has consumed water, a drink sweetened with sugar or a drink sweetened with succralose on three distinct occasions. After each session, the researchers used functional magnetic resonance imaging to analyze brain activity, collected blood samples and measured self-remedied hunger.
Em particular, a sucralose activated the hypothalamus – The key brain region involved in regulating appetite – more than sugar or water. Also improved communication between hypothalamus and other areas of the brain related to motivation and decision making, which can potentially bring the consumer to eat in excess, especially when the sweet taste is not combined with caloric intake.
Also, unlike sugar, sucralose failed to trigger the liberation of hormones such as insulin and GLP-1which help regulate appetite and signal satiety – especially in people with obesity, the investigators tell.
Interestingly, the study also found Differences between the sexes: Women presented greater changes in brain activity than men when they consumed sucralose.
