Sucralose, a common sugar substitute, affects the intestinal microbiome of ways that reduce the effectiveness of this treatment against cancer. Supplementing arginine diet can help minimize this effect.
Patients with certain types of cancer they consume sucralosesubstance present in artificial sweetenersThey respond worse to immunotherapy than those who do not consume it.
The conclusion is one presented in an article recently published in the magazine Cancer Discovery.
However, the study authors say, supplementing the diet with the amino acid arginine may mitigate this effect.
Conclusions join a growing set of scientific data that show that the intestinal microbiome-the vast community of microorganisms that inhabits our digestive system-plays a crucial role in the effectiveness of cancer treatments.
In this case, the succralose seems to disturb beneficial bacteria of the intestine that help to support immune function, INCLUGING THE T CELLSa central element of our immune system.
“What is new in this study is that sucralose is promoting a microbiome with Few beneficial bacteria and more of those that are not that useful, ”says Magdalena PlebanskiImmunologist at Rmit University in Melbourne, Australia, who was not part of the study.
“In addition, the study also suggests that sucralose may potentially be negatively affect T cells directly, ”notes the researcher.
A public in 2023 had already suggested that sucralose influence immunotherapy, but the underlying mechanism was unclear.
To deepen the issue, the immunologist Abby Overacre And their team analyzed the intestinal microbiome of succralose fed mice at levels equivalent to those humans could consume.
“Artificial sweeteners reduced diversity of the intestinal microbiome and, along with that, diminished the general levels of arginine”Explains Overacre, researcher at Pittsburgh University.Arginine is very important For the function of immunity cells, especially in the context of cancer. ”
The mice had been genetically modified to develop the same types of cancer as human patients. Those who received succralose presented lower response capacity To immunotherapy, while those fed with ordinary sugar normally responded, overacre note.
To realize How this was reflected in humansthe researchers evaluated 132 patients with advanced melanoma or non -small cell lung cancer, in treatment with Anti-PD1 Therapy – A type of immunotherapy that acts on a way used by cancer cells to escape the immune system.
According to the study’s authors, even small quantities of Sucralose seemed to have an adverse effect on the response to immunotherapy.
“We identified a limit value of approximately 0,07 mg per kilogram of body weight that separated patients with bad results from those who did not present this trend, ”says the medical oncologist Diwakar Davarfrom the University of Pittsburgh, also author of the study.
DAVAR points out that this value is much lower than the daily limit recommended by U.S. Food and Drug AdministrationUS Health Regulatory Agency for Sucralose Consumption: 5 milligrams per kilogram, the equivalent of about 22 cans of soda for a 70 -pound man.
Despite the quantities involved, Overacre advises patients in immunotherapy not panicnor “lie out everything they have in the kitchen”: the inclusion of a supplement Arginine or citrullinewhich increase arginine levels, is a simple measure that nullifies the effect of sucralose.
The clinical pharmacist in Oncology Andrew Ruplin It is more cautious, and underlines that patients should discuss the implications of these conclusions with their oncologists, to make adequate decisions regarding supplementation.
