Study found blood sugar levels not affected by sucralose-sweetened desserts

Research Significant for People with Type 2 Diabetes

ATLANTA (July 15, 2014) — Adding to the current body of science on the impact of sucralose in weight and diabetes management, university and medical researchers found that some desserts, when made with added soluble fiber (dextrin) and sucralose in place of added sugar, had no effect on blood sugar and insulin levels in people with type 2 diabetes. Results of the adult study were published in The Review of Diabetic Studies from the Society for Biomedical Diabetes Research.

Researchers incorporated desserts after meals among 70 study participants with type 2 diabetes. The researchers outlined three significant findings:

• Consumption of desserts made with sucralose and soluble fiber did not raise after-meal levels of glucose, insulin or C-peptide in comparison with meal consumption only (no dessert).
• Participants in the study who consumed the desserts made with sucralose had lower after-meal glucose and insulin levels than after eating the same desserts made with sugar.
• Desserts formulated with sucralose and soluble fiber may have a favorable effect on postprandial levels of glucose, insulin, and C-peptide in type 2 diabetic patients.

The study was conducted at the Diabetes Center of the General Hospital of Nikaea in Greater Athens, Greece and also included researchers from the Agricultural University of Athens. Researchers divided participants into seven groups of ten. On three occasions after an overnight fast, each participant received either a meal (bread and cheese); or a meal and dessert made with sucralose and dextrin; or a meal and dessert made with sugar.  Differences in glucose, insulin, and C-peptide were evaluated at five different points in time after each meal.   Among the desserts used in the study were cake, pastry cream, strawberry jelly, chocolate, and napoleons.  (The full text of the study, including more about the methodology, is available here.)

Unlike sugar, sucralose is not broken down for energy. It is not a source of carbohydrate or glucose, and clinical studies have shown it has no effect on blood glucose levels, insulin secretion or blood levels, glycosylated hemoglobin levels (HbA1c), or blood glucose control.

“Even though this research was short term, this study adds to the growing body of scientific evidence suggesting that sucralose can play an important role in the management of diabetes,” said Haley Curtis Stevens, Ph.D., President of the Calorie Control Council. In 2013, a separate study published in Diabetes Care, a journal of the American Diabetes Association, showed that consuming drinks containing sucralose have the same effect as drinking water on a one’s sugar and insulin levels.

About the Calorie Control Council
The Calorie Control Council, established in 1966, is an international association representing the low- and reduced-calorie food and beverage industry. Today it represents manufacturers and suppliers of low- and reduced-calorie foods and beverages, including manufacturers and suppliers of more than two dozen different alternative sweeteners, fibers and other low-calorie, dietary ingredients.  For helpful tips on weight loss and controlling calories, along with tools and truths on healthy eating and exercise for life, visit the Council’s main website at www.CalorieControl.org. For more about sucralose, visit www.Sucralose.org.

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