By The Epoch Times | Created at 2026-09-02 21:01:51 | Updated at 2026-09-02 22:24:39
1 hour ago
High blood levels of xylitol are associated with a higher risk of cardiovascular events than lower levels of the commonly used sugar substitute, according to an observational study.
In the study, which was presented at a European Society of Cardiology conference in late August, researchers discovered that individuals with high levels of the sweetener were linked to a higher risk of major cardiovascular problems such as heart attack, stroke, or death, compared to those with lower levels.
According to an Aug. 26 news release from the cardiology society, the researchers evaluated data from 17,710 participants across two large long-term studies: the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer (EPIC)-Norfolk and the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA).
In the CLSA cohort, participants with the highest xylitol levels saw a 57 percent higher risk of a major cardiovascular event over a six-year follow-up period, compared with people in the lowest-level cohort, said the researchers. In the EPIC cohort group, those who were in the top group had an 18 percent higher risk compared with people in the lowest-level group, they found.
The association between the sweetener and cardiovascular events was “independent of underlying factors such as body mass index, hypertension, diabetes and lipid levels, which might predispose people to low-calorie products,” the release said.
The researchers noted in the Aug. 26 news release that the study is observational, meaning that causalities may be difficult to infer between xylitol and a risk of heart attack or stroke. They added that more research is needed.
“Artificial sweeteners are consumed by people who think they are healthier than sugar and they are generally regarded as safe by regulatory agencies,” Dr. Marco Witkowski from the Charité University Hospital in Berlin said in an Aug. 26 statement.
“Our long-term findings in the general population highlight how little we know about the cardiovascular safety of xylitol and indicate that further studies are warranted, especially as the amount of xylitol in products continues to increase,” added Witkowski, who was involved in the study.
Tasting as sweet as regular sugar, xylitol is a naturally occurring sugar alcohol in a number of vegetables and fruits, and in certain trees. Xylitol is also sold in stores and is a white, crystalline-like powder, according to the Harvard Medical School.
Aside from potential cardiovascular issues highlighted in the new study, health researchers have separately said that xylitol can cause digestive problems like diarrhea, gas, and bloating in research published on the National Institutes of Health website.
Authorities have also long warned that dogs should not consume xylitol as it can cause liver failure, dangerously low blood sugar, or death.
“If you think your dog may have eaten a product containing xylitol, call your vet, emergency clinic, or animal poison control center right away,” the Food and Drug Administration says on its website.
Products that advertise themselves as having zero grams of sugar, or being “sugar free,” don’t necessarily mean that they contain xylitol.
Other sugar alternatives include stevia, erythritol, sorbitol, maltitol, sucralose, aspartame, and others, according to Johns Hopkins University. Some are derived from natural sources, while others like aspartame, saccharin, and sucralose are artificial.
