Be careful before you reach for that diet soda or even sugar-free gum. It could actually be making you fatter. A new USC study suggests that sucralose, a widely used artificial sweetener, may trick the brain into feeling hungry by activating the hypothalamus without providing the expected calories. Unlike sugar, sucralose does not stimulate fullness-promoting hormones and alters communication between brain regions responsible for motivation and sensory processing.
The research found that these effects were most pronounced in individuals with obesity, especially women. The findings raise concerns about how zero-calorie sweeteners may impact long-term eating habits and even brain development in children.
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With sucralose commonly found in diet sodas, sugar-free snacks, and other low-calorie foods, this study highlights potential risks that consumers should consider when choosing artificial sweeteners.
Sucralose is an artificial, non-nutritive sweetener. It is about 600 times sweeter than sucrose (table sugar) and has no caloric value. It is widely used in food and beverages as a sugar substitute.
Regulatory bodies like the FDA and the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) have concluded that sucralose is safe for consumption within the established Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI).
The ADI is a conservative estimate, set at levels much lower than those found to cause adverse effects in studies. However, some recent studies have raised concerns about potential negative effects, particularly with high consumption levels or long-term use. These studies suggest possible links to issues like gut microbiome disruption, inflammation, and potential DNA damage.
Dr. Kathleen Alanna Page, the study’s corresponding author and director of the USC Diabetes and Obesity Research Institute, said the findings show how sucralose confuses the brain by providing a sweet taste without the expected caloric energy. This “mismatch” could even trigger changes in cravings and eating behavior later on.
“If your body is expecting a calorie because of the sweetness, but doesn’t get the calorie it’s expecting, that could change the way the brain is primed to crave those substances over time,” she said. “The body uses these hormones to tell the brain you’ve consumed calories, in order to decrease hunger. Sucralose did not have that effect — and the differences in hormone responses to sucralose compared to sugar were even more pronounced in participants with obesity.”
