Consumption of sucrose and high-fructose corn syrup does not increase liver fat or ectopic fat deposition in muscles

Abstract

It has been postulated that fructose-induced triglyceride synthesis is augmented when accompanied by glucose. Chronic elevations could lead to excess fat accumulation in the liver and ectopic fat deposition in muscles, which in turn could contribute to the induction of abnormalities in glucose homeostasis, insulin resistance, and the subsequent development of type 2 diabetes. Our objective was to evaluate the effect of the addition of commonly consumed fructose- and (or) glucose-containing sugars in the usual diet on liver fat content and intramuscular adipose tissue. For 10 weeks, 64 individuals (mean age, 42.16 ± 11.66 years) consumed low-fat milk sweetened with either high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) or sucrose; the added sugar matched consumption levels of fructose in the 25th, 50th, and 90th percentiles of the population. The fat content of the liver was measured with unenhanced computed tomography imaging, and the fat content of muscle was assessed with magnetic resonance imaging. When the 6 HFCS and sucrose groups were averaged, there was no change over the course of 10 weeks in the fat content of the liver (13.32% ± 10.49% vs. 13.21% ± 10.75%; p > 0.05), vastus lateralis muscle (3.07 ± 0.74 g per 100 mL vs. 3.15 ± 0.84 g per 100 mL; p > 0.05), or gluteus maximus muscle (4.08 ± 1.50 g per 100 mL vs. 4.24 ± 1.42 g per 100 mL; p > 0.05). Group assignment did not affect the result (interaction > 0.05). These data suggest that when fructose is consumed as part of a typical diet in normally consumed sweeteners, such as sucrose or HFCS, ectopic fat storage in the liver or muscles is not promoted.

Potential link between excess added sugar intake and ectopic fat: a systematic review of randomized controlled trials

“…In the 6 studies in adults, liver fat was examined in 5, 34,37,38,40,41 VAT in 2, 40,41 and muscle fat in 4. 34,37,38,40 Five of the 6 studies compared high-fructose diets with high-glucose diets, 34,[38][39][40][41] …”

Macronutrients and type 1 diabetes (revision number 6)

“…Another trial by the same group demonstrated that consuming sucrose or HFCS sweetened low-fat milk as part of an ad libitum diet had no effect on the amount of fat in the liver or skeletal muscle or most fasting blood lipid concentrations. TAG concentrations increased, as did body mass, but this did not differ between the dietary groups (Bravo et al, 2013).…”

NAFLD e Ingesta de Fructosa en Altas concentraciones: Una Revisión de la Literatura

“…Es decir, el azúcar provoca en el hígado el mismo daño que el consumo de alcohol (Lustig, 2013). Cuando la fructosa es consumida en cantidades moderadas ya sea como jarabe de maíz o sacarosa no se almacena tejido adiposo ectópico en hígado o músculo esquelético (Bravo et al, 2013;Heden et al, 2014). La ingesta de fructosa acelera las alteraciones metabólicas asociadas con el envejecimiento tales como la resistencia a la insulina e intolerancia a la glucosa (Lozano et al, 2016).…”