Sugar Alcohols and Other Artificial Sweeteners and Their Connection with Cognitive Decline

As a food-first health practitioner and supplement expert, this study definitely caught my attention! (A link to the study is at the end of this article.)

This is Kate Mahoney, your food-first supplement expert and founder of the Supplement Academy, with a Scoop about the in-depth study that connects the consumption of sugar alcohols and other artificial sweeteners to cognitive decline.

I hope this information helps you use your discerning critical thinking to make well-informed decisions and recommendations regarding sugar alcohols and other artificial sweeteners for yourself and your patients.   

Like always, any links I share are clean links [aka affiliate-free] to ensure I continue to provide you with comprehensive information, free from affiliate bias or brand influence, as is in alignment with my integrity. 💜

Now let's dive in! 😀

This 8-year study, which included 12,772 individuals (approximately 55% women and 43% BIPOC), has found that most low- and no-calorie sweeteners are linked to cognitive decline, including the often-used sugar alcohols: erythritol, xylitol, and sorbitol.

Does xylitol have its place in some people’s lives due to its oral health benefits? (e.g. toothpaste, mouth wash, etc.)

Imo, ABSOLUTELY! But….
Based on the results of this study, not a good idea to use it as a food, aka sugar replacement.  

Additionally, most xylitol is synthesized from corn and rarely birch. (Birch is what xylitol was originally derived from, but continuing to derive it from birch was found to be costly and unsustainable, so corn became the primary raw material being used to synthesize it for over a decade.) Therefore, xylitol is contraindicated for people who react to corn, or birch for the rare xylitol options that are derived from birch.  

[SIDE NOTE: Unless xylitol specifies it is derived from birch, there is a 99.8% likelihood it has been synthesized from corn.] 

Tagatose was the only low-calorie artificial sweetener in the study that was NOT linked to cognitive decline, based on the results of this eight-year study.

If you look up tagatose, you’ll find a LOT of information talking about how it’s a naturally occurring sweetener, and that is true! It is found in very minute quantities in a variety of foods.

But what the clever tagatose marketing doesn’t talk about is… The tagatose available for purchase as a sugar replacement is NOT natural. It is biosynthetically produced, which is why it’s considered an artificial sweetener [and included in the study].

The marketing of tagatose reminds me of a point I made in the blog article I wrote about berberine vs Dihydroberberine aka DHB, where I talked about one of my biggest pet peeves in the food and supplement industry:
Profit over people.

This is due to the fact that the profit-over-people way of doing things chronically undermines food and supplement safety worldwide.  

As science [and time] have repeatedly shown, ALL artificial sweeteners have side effects. All. Of. Them. 👎 #JustSayNo

So even though tagatose wasn’t linked to cognitive decline in this study, the question remains:  
What *are* the side effects of tagatose artificial sweetener?  

As a discerning critical thinker, I know that time [and science] will eventually provide the answer. 

That concludes this Supplement Scoop!

In addition to the link to the original study, I’ve included links to some other articles and studies written on the topic [or topic adjacent] for anyone who’s interested in diving deeper.  

I hope this info is helpful, and until next time, remember that critical thinking + discernment is a SUPERPOWER. 🌟

Warm regards,
Kate 💜 

ORIGINAL STUDY
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40902134/

ADDITIONAL LINKS

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The Supplement Scoop blog is written by Kate Mahoney, a food-first dietary supplement expert, functional nutrition practitioner, and former international functional nutrition instructor with 30 years of experience. In 2020, she founded the Supplement Academy, where she helps health professionals and consumers around the world learn to evaluate supplement quality and effectiveness, free from affiliate bias and brand influence.  

Her mission is to empower everyone to identify the less than 15% of supplements worldwide that are worth using so they can confidently make informed choices.  

In her free time, Kate is a Muppet whose inner spark is rejuvenated by nature, dancing to super loud music with friends, caring for her rescued feline furbabies with her beloved spouse, and enjoying delicious homecooked food with loved ones.