6 popular sugar substitutes linked to faster brain aging: study

Key Points:

• A study from the University of São Paulo found that consumption of six common artificial sweeteners, including aspartame and saccharin, is linked to faster cognitive decline over eight years, especially affecting memory-related skills.
• The research followed nearly 13,000 adults aged 52 in Brazil and showed that those with the highest intake of sweeteners experienced a 62% faster decline in mental performance compared to those with the lowest intake, equivalent to about 1.6 extra years of aging.
• The cognitive decline was more pronounced in adults under 60 and particularly stronger among people with diabetes, a group that often uses sugar substitutes due to blood sugar concerns.
• The study is observational and has limitations such as reliance on self-reported dietary data and not covering all artificial sweeteners, so it cannot establish causation, only an association between sweetener intake and mental decline.
• Researchers call for more studies to confirm these findings and explore alternative sweeteners, while noting that artificial sweeteners remain widely used as consumers seek lower-calorie options.