You may have seen or heard people talking about the recent study connecting Erythritol (a common keto friendly sweetener) with Cardiovascular Disease. While headlines spread like wildfire, we took a closer look at the study's findings. Here's what you need to know.
Here's what the study found:
- Circulating levels of Erythritol are associated with a 3 year risk for major cardiovascular events.
- In a prospective pilot intervention study in healthy subjects Erythritol ingestion increased platelet reactivity and thrombosis potential in in vitro and in vivo studies.
Points to consider:
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The study found a link between having a higher risk of CVD and also having higher levels of Erythritol in the blood. This does not mean that eating Erythritol through food caused the higher levels in the blood, as the body can also produce Erythritol internally from glucose. So the study didn't find a direct correlation. Aka it wasn't saying 'eating erythritol raises erythritol in the blood, and this increases risk of CVD''. Rather the study showed that if you are someone with a higher risk of CVD, you may also have increased levels of erythritol (potentially produced from inside the body).
- The study was conducted on people who already have a predisposition to increased risk of Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) aka people who are already at risk for CVD, so this may leave out a large group of the population. It also excludes other risk factors that may have contributed. There were 8 participants in the study.
So...what does all this mean? While we aren't saying disregard this study, it is clear more research on sweeteners of all kinds are needed. Enjoy all sweets in moderation as a treat.
Do you need to worry about eating a piece of keto chocolate cake..no. As always it is best to do what is right for your body.
To learn more, what our short video here.
Here is a link to the original study: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-023-02223-9