Xylitol, an artificial sweetener used in chewing gum, toothpaste, jam, yoghurts and ice-cream has been linked to an increased risk of heart attacks, strokes and death, according to a study presented at the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) annual congress in Munich.
Xylitol is a sugar alcohol that is present in some natural foods in very low amounts. It is added – often in over 1,000-fold higher amounts – to artificially sweeten foods, beverages and oral care products.
Despite its growing use, the long-term impact of xylitol on cardiovascular event risk has not been widely studied.
Dr Marco Witkowski from the Charité University Hospital, Berlin, Germany said: “In previous studies, we showed that xylitol can enhance the ability of platelets to form clots.”
The research team looked at data from 17,710 participants in two prospective observational cohorts: the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA) and the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer (EPIC)-Norfolk.
People with high xylitol levels were at substantially higher risk of adverse cardiovascular events (defined as death, myocardial infarction or stroke) than those with lower xylitol levels.
Over a follow-up period of six years, the risk of a major adverse cardiovascular event was 57% higher in those with the highest levels of xylitol than those at the lowest levels.
The researchers pointed out that taken together with data from the middle quartiles, "the results from both cohorts suggested a dose-dependent relationship: the higher the xylitol blood levels, the higher the cardiovascular event rate."
Witkowski said the study highlights how little is known about the cardiovascular safety of xylitol and further studies are warranted.
