Low-calorie sweeteners ‘may make you fatter’

THEY are used by millions of tea drinkers hoping to keep off the pounds.

But low-calorie sweeteners could be making us fatter, a study has suggested.

Researchers found that of adults who ate broadly the same diet, those who used sweeteners went on to become larger than those who did not.

They said that one possible explanation is that the sugar substitutes affect our metabolism – triggering it to lay down more abdominal fat.

The US study looked at the body measurements and diets of 1,454 men and woman in the years between 1984 and 2012.

It found that ten years on, those who did use the sugar alternative had a 2.6cm (1in) larger waist circumference on average and were 37 per cent more likely to have abdominal obesity.

The study, by the Department of Health and Human Services, concluded: ‘Low-calorie sweetener use is independently associated with heavier relative weight, a larger waist and a higher prevalence and incidence of abdominal obesity.

‘This suggests that low-calorie sweetener use may not be an effective means of weight control.’

Co-author Dr Chee Chia said: ‘This is a cause of concern and has important public health implications. We need to do more work to look at what is going on.’

However, the International Sweeteners Association said the study was observational and as such could not prove cause and effect.