Effect of Nonnutritive Sweetener Sucralose on Cardiometabolic Risk Factors among Adults with Type 2 Diabetes in India-A Randomized Clinical Trial

Background: Non-Nutritive sweeteners (NNS) can help in reducing calorie intake if substituted for sugar. Studies on the effect of replacing sugar with NNS in adults with type 2 diabetes (T2D) from India are sparse. The present study was carried out to evaluate, the effect of replacing added sugar with sucralose-based NNS in daily beverages like coffee, tea and fruit juices on cardiometabolic risk factors. Method: This randomized parallel arm trial was done among adults (30-50 yrs) with T2D. Participants were randomized into Intervention arm (replacement of added sugar with NNS) and Control arm (no sugar replacement) group for a period of 12 weeks. Change in anthropometric and biochemical markers from baseline were analyzed using standard protocols. Results: Data of 115 participants who completed the study (Control group, n=42 and intervention group, n=73) was analyzed. Significant reduction in waist circumference (p=0.02), lipid accumulation product (p=0.02), and visceral adiposity index (p= 0.02) was seen in the intervention group, when compared to control group. Plasma sucralose was analyzed in a subset of participants and was undetectable, indicating that sucralose is not absorbed, systematically. Conclusion: The study shows that replacement of added sugar with NNS, leads to favourable changes in adiposity indices among adults with T2D. Disclosure V.Mohan: None. K.Kamala: None. A.Kuzhanthaivelu: None. G.Rajagopal: None. G.Gunasekeran: None. P.Soundararajan: None. R.Marimuthu: None. R.Unnikrishnan: None. R.Anjana: None. S.Vasudevan: None.