Six-month study finds cutting sweet foods doesn’t alter cravings or health markers

In a six-month parallel randomized controlled trial, 180 adults were divided into three diet groups differing only in the amount of sweet-tasting foods they consumed, sourced from sugar, natural sugars or low-calorie sweeteners. Conducted by Wageningen University and Research together with Bournemouth University, the study measured participants’ sweet-taste liking, body weight and blood and urine markers linked to diabetes and cardiovascular risk at one, three and six months.

Results indicated no statistically significant differences among the high, low and average-sweetness groups for any of these outcomes, and participants tended to return to their usual sweet-food consumption after the study ended. The investigators argue that targeting overall sugar and energy-dense food intake may be more effective than trying to reduce the sensory experience of sweetness. Their findings challenge existing dietary recommendations that broadly advise cutting sweet-tasting foods to combat obesity. The study was published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.