Gut microbiota composition in relation to intake of added sugar, sugar-sweetened beverages and artificially sweetened beverages in the Malmö Offspring Study

• DOI: 10.1007/s00394-020-02392-0
• Publication Date: 2020-10-08T07:02:49Z
• Authors: Stina Ramne; Louise Brunkwall; Ulrika Ericson; Nicola Gray; Gunter G. C. Kuhnle; Peter M. Nilsson; Marju Orho-Melander; Emily Sonestedt
• Keywords: Adult; Sugar-Sweetened Beverages; 2. Zero hunger; 0301 basic medicine; Adolescent; Artificially Sweetened Beverages; 590; Original Contribution; Middle Aged; Gastrointestinal Microbiome; Beverages; Young Adult; 03 medical and health sciences; Cross-Sectional Studies; RNA, Ribosomal, 16S; Sweetening Agents; Humans; Sugars; Aged

AbstractPurposeIt has been suggested that a high intake of sugar or sweeteners may result in an unfavorable microbiota composition; however, evidence is lacking. Hence, in this exploratory epidemiological study, we aim to examine if intake of added sugar, sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) or artificially sweetened beverages (ASBs) associate with the gut microbiota composition.MethodsParticipants (18–70 years) in the Malmö Offspring Study have provided blood, urine, and fecal samples and completed both web-based 4 day food records and short food frequency questionnaires. The gut microbiota was assessed by 16S rRNA sequencing, processed in QIIME and matched to Greengenes (v.13.8), giving 64 included genera after filtering. Intake of added sugar (n = 1371) (also supported by the overnight urinary sugar biomarker in a subgroupn = 577), SSBs (n = 1086) and ASBs (n = 1085) were examined as exposures in negative binomial regressions.ResultsVarious genera nominally associated with intake of added sugar, SSBs, and ASBs. Only the negative association between SSB intake andLachnobacteriumremained significant after multiple testing correction. A positive association between SSB intake and the Firmicutes:Bacteroidetes ratio was also observed.ConclusionIn this wide population, the cross-sectional associations between added sugar and sweet beverage intake and the gut microbiota are modest, but the results suggest that SSB intake is associated negatively with the genusLachnobacteriumand positively with the Firmicutes:Bacteroidetes ratio. Larger studies, preferably using metagenomic sequencing, are needed to further evaluate if a link exists between intake of sugars and sweeteners and the human gut microbiota.