Hafner Edvina, Hribar Maša, Hristov Hristo, Kušar Anita, Žmitek Katja, Roe Mark, Pravst Igor
Nutrition Institute, Tržaška Cesta 40, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia.
VIST-Higher School of Applied Sciences, Gerbičeva Cesta 51A, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia.
Foods. 2021 Feb 10;10(2):387. doi: 10.3390/foods10020387.
Excessive sugar intake and the associated increased obesity risk indicate that food reformulation is needed. Non-alcoholic beverages are often high in free sugars, making reformulation with low and no-calorie sweeteners (LNCS) a common choice. Our knowledge of the use of LNCS in the European food supply is, however, very limited. This study aimed to evaluate the trends in the use of LNCS in different non-alcoholic beverages in the Slovenian food supply over the course of two years. We assessed which LNCS are most used and how the use of LNCS affects energy and sugar content. We analyzed labeling information of non-alcoholic beverages in selected grocery stores, covering the majority of the Slovenian food supply. Selected grocery stores were located in the capital city (Ljubljana). LNCS were present in 13.2% and 15.5% of non-alcoholic beverages in the years 2017 and 2019, respectively. The use of LNCS has significantly increased only in energy drinks ( < 0.01). The most used LNCS in 2017 were acesulfame K, aspartame, and cyclamates. In 2019 the use of sucralose increased significantly ( < 0.01) to become the second most used LNCS. Energy and sugar content varied between subcategories, which depended on the presence of added sugar and LNCS. Comparison between the energy value and the presence of the LNCS showed an almost 50% lower energy content of beverages containing both added sugar and LNCS (E = 92.8 kJ; E = 96.2 kJ per 100 mL), compared with beverages with only added sugar (E = 161.8 kJ; E = 159.0 kJ per 100 mL). In beverages sweetened only with LNCS, the difference was even more noticeable (E = 22.3 kJ; E = 14.3 kJ per 100 mL). Results show that the use of LNCS can help producers reduce the energy value of non-alcoholic beverages. Still, compared to other countries, the offer of such products in the Slovenian food supply is relatively low. However, due to possible public health risks of excessive use of LNCS, producers should be further encouraged for reformulation and production of less sweet products without LNCS, enabling consumers to adapt to less sweet taste of beverages. Further monitoring of LNCS in the food supply is therefore recommended, preferably also with consideration of sales data.
过量的糖摄入以及随之增加的肥胖风险表明需要对食品进行重新配方。非酒精饮料通常游离糖含量很高，因此用低热量和无热量甜味剂（LNCS）进行重新配方是常见的选择。然而，我们对LNCS在欧洲食品供应中的使用情况了解非常有限。本研究旨在评估两年间斯洛文尼亚食品供应中不同非酒精饮料使用LNCS的趋势。我们评估了哪种LNCS使用最多，以及LNCS的使用如何影响能量和糖含量。我们分析了选定杂货店中非酒精饮料的标签信息，这些杂货店覆盖了斯洛文尼亚大部分食品供应。选定的杂货店位于首都卢布尔雅那。2017年和2019年，分别有13.2%和15.5%的非酒精饮料含有LNCS。LNCS的使用仅在能量饮料中显著增加（<0.01）。2017年使用最多的LNCS是乙酰磺胺酸钾、阿斯巴甜和甜蜜素。2019年，三氯蔗糖的使用显著增加（<0.01），成为第二大常用的LNCS。能量和糖含量在不同子类别之间有所不同，这取决于添加糖和LNCS的存在情况。能量值与LNCS存在情况的比较表明，与仅添加糖的饮料（每100毫升能量值分别为161.8千焦和159.0千焦）相比，同时含有添加糖和LNCS的饮料能量含量几乎低50%（每100毫升能量值分别为92.8千焦和96.2千焦）。在仅用LNCS调味的饮料中，差异更为明显（每100毫升能量值分别为22.3千焦和14.3千焦）。结果表明，使用LNCS可以帮助生产商降低非酒精饮料的能量值。不过，与其他国家相比，此类产品在斯洛文尼亚食品供应中的供应相对较少。然而，由于过度使用LNCS可能存在公共健康风险，应进一步鼓励生产商重新配方并生产不含LNCS的低糖产品，使消费者适应饮料较淡的甜味。因此，建议进一步监测食品供应中的LNCS，最好也考虑销售数据。
