Role of Sweetness in Glucose Regulation

Summary

Data from several studies show that consuming a diet high in low-calorie sweeteners (LCS), mainly in diet sodas, is linked to the same metabolic disorders as consuming a diet high in added sugars, including an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Sweet taste receptors, once thought to be unique to the mouth, have now been discovered in other parts of the body, including the intestine and the pancreas, where they play a role in blood sugar control. These newly identified receptors provide new avenues to explore how LCS may affect metabolism and health. This project is designed to examine the role of sweet taste signaling, both in the mouth and in the gut, on blood sugar control and how habitual consumption of LCS may affect sweet taste signaling and metabolism in people with obesity.

Conditions

• Obesity

Interventions

OTHER

Control - Inhibition

Taste and spit up water 10 minutes before drinking a glucose load

OTHER

Experimental I- Inhibition

Taste and spit up water 10 minutes before drinking a glucose load mixed with lactisole

OTHER

Experimental II- Inhibition

Taste and spit up sucralose 10 minutes before drinking a glucose load mixed with lactisole

OTHER

Control- Stimulation

Taste and spit up water 10 minutes before drinking a glucose load

OTHER

Experimental I- Stimulation

Taste and spit up sucralose 10 minutes before drinking a glucose load

OTHER

Experimental II- Stimulation

Drink sucralose 10 minutes before drinking a glucose load

OTHER

Sensory Evaluation

Taste different solutions to evaluate sweet taste preference, suprathreshold intensity and detection threshold

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Washington University School of Medicine

  collaborator OTHER

• University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Marta Y Pepino, PhD · University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

BASIC_SCIENCE

Masking

NONE

Model

CROSSOVER

Eligibility

Min Age

21 Years

Max Age

40 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2019-04-24

Primary Completion

2022-11-30

Completion

2022-12-31

Countries

• United States

Study Locations