{"id":248489,"date":"2026-04-22T08:23:57","date_gmt":"2026-04-22T06:23:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/crownsportnutrition.com\/?p=248489"},"modified":"2026-04-22T09:16:27","modified_gmt":"2026-04-22T07:16:27","slug":"sweeteners-flavorings-and-other-additives-how-do-they-affect-athletes-health","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/crownsportnutrition.com\/en\/sweeteners-flavorings-and-other-additives-how-do-they-affect-athletes-health\/","title":{"rendered":"Sweeteners, flavorings, and other additives: how do they affect athletes\u2019 health?"},"content":{"rendered":"

In recent decades, with the growing obesity pandemic, added sugars have been the focus of attention of major health institutions such as the World Health Organization (WHO), which recommends that these sugars account for no more than 5\u201310% of total caloric intake.<\/p>

In this context, we are experiencing a transition in which sweeteners, flavorings, and other additives<\/strong> have become a regular part of our diet. Today, they are found in most products, including sports nutrition.<\/p>

However, many athletes do not consider a key question:<\/p>

How do sweeteners and additives affect health and sports performance?<\/strong><\/p>

The use of sweeteners and additives in sports nutrition<\/strong> <\/h2>

The sports supplement market is flooded with protein shakes, gels, bars, and other products with \u201ccookie,\u201d \u201cred berry,\u201d \u201ccola,\u201d and countless other flavors made possible by processed chemical products.<\/p>

Although reducing sugar content is not usually the main reason for adding these flavorings (in sports, the current trend is rather the opposite: consuming more and more carbohydrates), these compounds make it possible to increase the palatability of products or even change their color to improve appearance.<\/p>

However, it is striking that athletes\u2014people who in many cases take care of even the smallest detail of their diet and training\u2014do not consider the possible consequences of regularly ingesting these sweeteners or flavorings.<\/p>

Consequences of sweeteners and flavorings for health<\/strong><\/h2>

Interestingly, despite having no calories, the intake of sweeteners and other additives has been associated not only with a higher risk of obesity, but also with poorer metabolic health.<\/p>

For example, one study analyzed the consumption of products with sweeteners such as aspartame or saccharin in more than one hundred thousand people over 9 years [1]. The results showed that high consumption of these products was associated with a 69% higher risk of developing type II diabetes<\/strong>, regardless of other factors such as age, weight, or level of physical activity.<\/p>

Due to these findings, since 2023 the WHO has recommended not consuming sweeteners, not even with the goal of losing weight, as they may be ineffective in the long term and even harmful to health.<\/p>

Effects on the gut microbiota<\/strong> <\/h2>

There is increasing evidence that one of the main mechanisms by which sweeteners, flavorings, and other additives affect health is their impact on the gut microbiota<\/strong>.<\/p>

The microbiota plays a fundamental role in health, modulating, among other functions, the inflammatory state of the body. Dysbiosis (alteration of the microbiota) has been associated with the development of metabolic diseases and even cancer.<\/p>

In addition, the microbiota plays a key role in sports performance, helping to optimally metabolize nutrients and promoting adaptations to training.<\/p>

In this regard, it has been observed that high consumption of ultra-processed foods containing sweeteners or flavorings can alter the microbiota.<\/p>

For example:<\/p>