2,000 Times Sweeter Than Sugar, Yet Without a Blood Sugar Spike

Scientists have found that a protein 2,000 times sweeter than sugar halved the blood sugar spike caused by ice cream.

Scientists are still looking for ways to replace sugar in our diet. Even though sugar makes food taste very pleasant, we know that it is not good for health; Besides, there are doubts about the effects of artificial sweeteners.

According to a new study published in the journal "Clinical Nutrition ESPEN", a protein called "brazzein" may be the solution to this problem.

This protein, which is originally found in a fruit native to West Africa and today is mainly produced by engineered fungi, is easily and naturally processed in the body, and its sweetness is up to two thousand times more than sugar by weight.

Researchers at the Federal Research Center for Nutrition, Biotechnology and Food Safety in Russia conducted experiments on 101 adults with "metabolic disorder-associated fatty liver disease" (MASLD); A complication that is often associated with obesity and diabetes, in which fat accumulates in the liver.

This study, a randomized, controlled, double-blind, crossover trial, focused on ice cream, one of the most tempting types of sweet treats.

Each of the participants consumed a standard serving of 100 grams of vanilla ice cream on three separate days; One bar of ice cream containing sugar, one bar of ice cream sweetened with brazine and one bar of ice cream containing brazine with dietary fiber inulin.

The remarkable thing in the obtained data was that the increase in blood sugar after a meal was significantly reduced, both with the use of brazine and with the combination of brazine and inulin. In both cases, the blood sugar spike was about half that seen in sugar-sweetened ice cream.

Because the instructions for making the sugar-free ice creams also varied in other ingredients, the researchers note that the effect cannot be attributed solely to brazine.

This research team wrote in their published article: From the perspective of clinical nutrition, the present findings show that the tested formulations (sucrose-free and brazine-containing) may be worthy of further investigation as potential options for replacing sugar in patients with MASLD, including those with type 2 diabetes.

The reduction in blood sugar spikes was more pronounced in participants with type 2 diabetes, although it was also significant in non-diabetic subjects, and no serious side effects were reported.

These findings confirm previous research on mice that showed that brazin can act as a substitute for sugar; An alternative that maintains the sweetness, but does not have the disadvantages of sugar. Also, this study paves the way for research that monitors participants and their blood sugar status over a longer period of time.

Researchers say: The severity and timing of the observed effects justify conducting future studies on foods sweetened with brazine. Researchers want to conduct long-term studies in which brazine replaces sugar in a wide range of common foods.

Brassin, as a protein, has a resistant structure and can withstand temperatures up to 80 degrees Celsius and a wide range of acidity levels. This feature means it can be added to a variety of foods, including desserts and frozen meals.

However, as the researchers point out, sugar is not the only cause of sweetness. For example, sugar in ice cream gives it volume and concentration (viscosity). This study shows that the use of other "filler" compounds in addition to brazine can lead to the production of a product very similar to the original sample.

Such an approach is likely to be more effective than asking people to completely cut sugar out of their diet, because then sugary treats will still remain in the food basket.

Sugar-sweetened foods and beverages, including popular items such as ice cream, desserts, and pastries, have a deep place in dietary patterns around the world, and their consumption continues to increase, researchers say. The severe restriction of these products in the diet is often unrealistic and may lead to people not adhering to nutritional recommendations.

Much research still needs to be done, but eventually we may see the use of brazine instead of sugar in foods suitable for people with diabetes or diseases such as "MASLD" (fatty liver disease associated with metabolic dysfunction) or those who want to reduce sugar consumption in general.

What's not clear here is the potential effect of consuming brazine-sweetened foods on fatty liver, diabetes, blood pressure, or other related diseases over months or years. Furthermore, the participants in this study were a small subset of the population, all with MASLD, and many of whom were diagnosed as obese.

We know that many factors can affect blood sugar, from who you eat with to how you eat; All these factors can be carefully investigated in future research.

Longer studies are needed to determine whether frequent replacement of sucrose-containing desserts with brazine-sweetened alternatives results in sustained metabolic, hepatic, microbiome, or behavioral benefits, the researchers say.

This research was published in the journal Clinical Nutrition ESPEN.