Dietary exposure to high-intensity sweeteners by the Brazilian self-declared diabetic population and general Brazilian population

Abstract

Due to an increasing use of high-intensity sweeteners in foods and potential health implications of high levels exposure, the intake of high-intensity sweeteners present in the diet of the Brazilian population and the self-declared diabetic population, based on national consumption data from the 2017–2018 Family Budget Survey (POF), was estimated. The occurrence of the high-intensity sweeteners was established by labeling foods obtained in physical stores and online, in two scenarios: average and maximum concentration. Food consumption data were derived for the self-declared diabetic Brazilian population and the Brazilian population for average consumers and consumers only, stratified by: sex, age, habitation, and regions from Brazil. For consumers only of the general Brazilian population, the intake of sodium cyclamate, steviol glycosides, and sucralose exceeded the Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI), mainly in adolescents (131.3%, 117.2, 123.0% of respective ADI). The estimated intake for the diabetic population was below ADI in all scenarios calculated. The most exposed diabetic population to sodium cyclamate and sucralose were female (69.6% and 59.4% of respective ADI) and the elderly (79.2% and 70.1% of respective ADI). The Brazilian population, mainly high consumers, was more exposed to high-intensity sweeteners than the self-declared diabetic population.