FDA-Approved Low-Calorie Sweetener Widely Used in America Poses a Serious Risk of Stroke— Study Says
A chemical called “erythritol” appears harmless on the surface, each time you sip a can of cola soda or chomp on a sweetened protein bar. But when it seeps into the body, intruding inside in little quantities, it weakens the body’s protective and defensive barriers, ultimately increasing its vulnerability to deadly diseases. In a new study documented in the Journal of Applied Physiology, researchers suggested that this seemingly innocent sweetener may be quietly undermining the body’s crucial protective barriers, with potential consequences for heart health and stroke risk.
Erythritol, the notorious chemical crook, unleashes its deceptive strategy with a “double assault” that weakens and disrupts the body’s natural antioxidative defenses over time. The strategy begins with the slow release of “free radicals” into the bodily system. A free radical is a destabilized and unstable molecule, featuring unpaired electrons. In small quantities, free radicals are just as harmless as eating a pizza once every few months. But over time, a deluge of these molecules overwhelms the proteins, blood vessels, cells, and DNA strands in the body, resulting in something scientists call “oxidative stress.”
Researchers analyzing the effects of erythritol noticed that it acts out its cunning toxicity by assaulting the blood vessels. Anglia Ruskin, professor of biomedical science, described in The Conversation that blood vessels are the “traffic controllers” that decide when to contract the muscles and when to widen them, like in exercise. The delicate balance is achieved through nitric oxide, which relaxes the blood vessels, and endothelin-1, which constricts them. The release of erythritol in the bloodstream was observed to disrupt the critical balance. Researchers found that the chemical reduces nitric oxide production while ramping up endothelin-1.
As a result, the blood vessels become terrifyingly constricted. Over time, the brain becomes starved of oxygen and nutrients. Despite being hailed as one of the safest alternatives to sugar, erythritol was proven to be a boogeyman that jolts the body in a tailspin of perpetual destruction, rather than evolution. The imbalance triggered is a warning sign of ischemic stroke, the type of stroke caused by blood clots, blocking vessels in the brain.
Ruskin and her fellow researchers from the University of Colorado Boulder observed that erythritol provoked a chain reaction of cell damage that could make the brain more vulnerable to blood clots. Normally, when clots form in blood vessels, cells release a “clot buster” called tissue plasminogen activator that dissolves the blockage before it can cause a stroke. This is the body’s natural defense against blood clots. But when the sweetener comes in contact with the body, it blocks the protective mechanism, potentially leaving clots to roam free and wreak havoc in the physiological landscape.
This FDA-approved low-calorie sweetener contains 60 to 80 percent sweetness of sugar, and nearly zero calories. Naturally found in grapes, peaches, mushrooms, alcohols, and protein bars, the chemical is regarded as a tabletop sweetener and generally the safest sugar alternative, often resulting in bloating and gas. Add another layer of deception to its innocence: it doesn’t cause tooth decay. Its innocent status has even caused its name to be written in so-called “sugar-free” and “keto-friendly” foods. Weight management trainers prescribe it to their clients for weight loss, reducing calories, and controlling blood sugar. The eye-opening insight helped scientists in avoiding its inclusion in the recent World Health Organization guidelines that discouraged the use of artificial sweeteners for weight control.
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