研究：木糖醇等甜味剂或引发心脏病和中风 Common low-calorie sweetener linked to heart attack and stroke, study finds

近年来“三高”人群和“糖人”越来越多，以至于有的人“谈糖色变”，把爱喝的可乐都换成了无糖可乐。但是木糖醇等人造甜味剂真的比糖更健康吗？新研究发现，大量摄入木糖醇可能会增加血栓，引发心脏病和中风，而且可能在代谢系统中产生反作用，从而让减肥更困难。

A low-calorie sweetener called xylitol used in many reduced-sugar foods and consumer products such as gum and toothpaste may be linked to nearly twice the risk of heart attacks, stroke and death in people who consume the highest levels of the sweetener, a new study found.
一项新研究发现，木糖醇摄入量最大的人群心脏病发作、中风和死亡的风险比其他人群高出近两倍，而木糖醇可能就是幕后元凶。木糖醇是一种被用于口香糖和牙膏等许多低糖食品和消费品中的低热量甜味剂。

Lab and animal research revealed low-calorie sweeteners such as erythritol and xylitol may cause blood platelets to clot more readily. Clots can break off and travel to the heart, triggering a heart attack, or to the brain, triggering a stroke.
实验室和动物研究显示，像赤藓糖醇和木糖醇这样的低热量甜味剂可能会导致血小板更容易凝结成血块。凝结的血块（血栓）可能会脱落并沿着血流进入心脏，引发心脏病发作，或者进入大脑，引发中风。

Some 61% of American adults will have cardiovascular disease by 2050, according to a recent prediction by the American Heart Association. Reducing clotting activity is a key treatment used by cardiologists, so any additional clotting in platelets is a bad sign, said Dr. Andrew Freeman, director of cardiovascular prevention and wellness at National Jewish Health in Denver.
根据美国心脏协会最近的预测，到2050年，约有61%的美国成年人将患有心血管疾病。位于丹佛市的美国国立犹太健康中心心血管预防与健康部主任安德鲁·弗里曼博士说，减少血栓是心脏病学家使用的一个关键疗法，因此血小板中增加的任何血栓都是一个不好的信号。

"When someone has a heart attack, we give them aspirin or drugs like clopidogrel, or Plavix, to counter platelet activity. These sugar alcohols appear to be enhancing platelet activity, which is concerning,” said Freeman, who was not associated with the new research.
弗里曼说："当某人心脏病发作时，我们给患者服用阿司匹林或类似氯吡格雷或波立维的药物来对抗血小板活动。这些糖醇似乎在增强血小板活动，令人担忧。"弗里曼并未参与这项新研究。

"This is another warning we ought to switch to water, with a close second being unsweetened tea or coffee,” he said.
他说："这又是在警告我们应该改为喝水，其次是不加糖的茶或咖啡。”

As sweet as sugar with less than half the calories, xylitol is often used in sugarless gum, breath mints, toothpaste, mouthwash, cough syrup and chewable vitamins. It is frequently added in larger quantities to candy, baked goods, cake mixes, barbecue sauces, ketchup, peanut butter, puddings, pancake syrup and more.
木糖醇和糖一样甜，但热量不到糖的一半，常被用于无糖口香糖、薄荷糖、牙膏、漱口水、咳嗽糖浆和维生素咀嚼片。木糖醇经常以更大的剂量被添加到糖果、烘焙食品、蛋糕混合粉、烧烤酱、番茄酱、花生酱、布丁、煎饼糖浆等产品中。

Xylitol is a sugar alcohol, a carbohydrate found naturally in foods such as cauliflower, eggplant, lettuce, mushrooms, spinach, plums, raspberries and strawberries. However, the amount of xylitol found in such natural sources is tiny, Hazen said.
木糖醇是一种糖醇，是一种在花椰菜、茄子、生菜、蘑菇、菠菜、李子、覆盆子和草莓等食物中天然存在的碳水化合物。然而，哈森指出，这些天然来源的木糖醇含量极低。

"If you actually do the calculation, it literally takes a tonnage of fruit to be equivalent to one diabetic cookie that can have like nine grams of xylitol, which is a typical label amount,” he said.
他说："如果你真的去算一算，实际上需要成吨的水果才能提取出一块糖尿病患者专用饼干中所含的木糖醇，一般标注为9克。"

For commercial use, however, xylitol is made from corncobs, birch trees or genetically engineered bacteria.
然而，用于商业化生产的木糖醇是从玉米芯、桦树或基因工程菌中提取的。

"It’s sold as a so-called natural sweetener, and because xylitol doesn’t spike blood sugar levels, it’s also marketed as low carb and keto friendly,” said senior study author Dr. Stanley Hazen, director of the Center for Cardiovascular Diagnostics and Prevention at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner Research Institute.
该研究的资深作者、克利夫兰诊所勒纳研究所心血管疾病诊断与预防中心主任斯坦利·哈森博士说："它在出售时号称天然甜味剂，而且因为木糖醇不会导致血糖水平飙升，它也被作为低碳水化合物和生酮友好产品进行营销。"

Many professional associations also recommend xylitol as a sugar substitute for patients with obesity, diabetes or prediabetes to improve glycemic control, he added.
哈森补充道，许多专业协会还推荐木糖醇作为肥胖、糖尿病或糖尿病前期患者的糖替代品，以更好地控制血糖。

"Yet people at risk for diabetes are among the most vulnerable for clotting events,” he said. “We’re targeting the wrong people.”
哈森说："然而，有糖尿病风险的人是最容易发生血栓的。我们将木糖醇推荐给了错误的人群。"

Exposure has increased over the last two decades, Hazen said, because the US Food and Drug Administration recognizes sugar alcohols as GRAS, or “generally recognized as safe.”
哈森说，过去二十年来人们对木糖醇的摄入量有所增加，因为美国食品药品监督管理局认为糖醇是GRAS，即"普遍被认为安全"。

"Xylitol is cheaper to make than cane sugar and so more and more keeps getting incorporated as a sugar substitute into food,” he said.
他说："木糖醇比蔗糖便宜，因此越来越多的木糖醇被作为糖替代品添加进食品中。"

Research has shown some artificial sweeteners may create a backlash in the metabolic system, triggering the body to expect more calories, thus making weight loss more difficult.
研究表明，一些人造甜味剂可能会在代谢系统中产生反作用，让身体渴望摄入更多的卡路里，从而使减肥更加困难。

The study, published Thursday in the European Heart Journal, began as a way of finding unknown chemicals or compounds in a person’s blood that might predict the risk for a heart attack, stroke or death within the next three years.
这项研究发表在上周四（6月6日）的《欧洲心脏杂志》上，起初是为了寻找可能预测未来三年内心脏病发作、中风或死亡风险的未知化学物质或化合物。

To do so, Hazen and his team analyzed 1,157 blood samples from people who were undergoing assessment for heart disease that had been collected between 2004 and 2011. They also examined another batch of blood samples from more than 2,100 people who may also have had high risk for heart disease.
为此，哈森和他的团队分析了2004年至2011年间收集的1157份正在接受心脏病评估的人的血液样本。他们还检查了另一批来自2100多人的血液样本，这些人患心脏病的风险也较高。

They found a number of alcohol sugars that appeared to have an impact on cardiovascular function, including xylitol and erythritol. Erythritol is the predominant ingredient by weight in many stevia and monkfruit products.
他们发现一些糖醇似乎对心血管功能有影响，包括木糖醇和赤藓糖醇。赤藓糖醇是许多甜菊和罗汉果产品中按重量计算的主要成分。

The February 2023 erythritol in study found the risk of heart attack and stroke nearly doubled within three years when people had the highest levels of erythritol in their blood.
2023年2月对赤藓糖醇的研究发现，当人们血液中赤藓糖醇水平最高时，三年内心脏病发作和中风的风险几乎翻了一番。

For the new study on xylitol, the results were basically the same — people with the highest levels of xylitol compared to those with the lowest levels had nearly twice the risk of heart attack, stroke and death, Hazen said.
哈森说，对于新的木糖醇研究，结果基本上是一样的——与木糖醇水平最低的人相比，血液中木糖醇水平最高的人心脏病发作、中风和死亡的风险几乎是其两倍。

The World Health Organization warned consumers in 2023 to avoid artificial sweeteners for weight loss, and has called for additional research on the long-term toxicity of low- and no-calorie sweeteners, the study said.
研究称，世界卫生组织在2023年警告消费者避免使用人造甜味剂来减肥，并呼吁进一步对低热量和无热量甜味剂的长期毒性进行研究。

"Through their work, the investigators have shined a light on the safety of sugar substitutes. There is more to learn,” Mount Sinai’s Tomey said. “In the meantime, it is worth remembering that sugar substitutes are no substitute for a sincere commitment to the several elements of a healthy diet and lifestyle.”
西奈山医院的托米表示："通过他们的工作，研究人员揭示了糖替代品的安全性问题。还有更多需要学习的东西。与此同时，值得记住的是，糖替代品不能替代健康的饮食和生活方式。”

英文来源：美国有线电视新闻网

翻译&编辑：丹妮

审校：齐磊、高琳琳