The scientists of Berlin's Humboldt University found that individuals who ate 16 to 20 sticks of chewing gum artificially sweetened by sorbitol lost a total of 20 percent of their total weight.
Observations were made in the case if a 21-year old woman whose diarrhea led to the loss of 24 pounds, and that of a 46-year old man who lost 46 pounds due to the same cause. The two patients were reported to have been going to the bathroom at least 10 times a day. The main culprit for their condition was left undetected, until doctors decided to focus on their chewing habits.
According to Dr. Herbert Lochs, report co-author and professor of internal medicine at the university, said that ingesting excessive amounts of sorbitol has long been linked to a risk in diarrhea.
"There have been case reports earlier, as far back as the 1980s," HealthDaily News quoted Dr. Lochs, who conducted the study with the University of Berlin gastroenterologist Dr. Jurgen Bauditz. "These were people who did not have malabsorption and malnutrition."
According to MedPage Today, the two patients started to regain their weight after sorbitol intake was eliminated.
Dr. Bret Lashner of the Cleveland Clinic said that although the study proved substantial, Americans had no reason to worry, as the sugar substitute most widely used for U.S. products is aspartame, included in NutraSweet.
"NutraSweet and saccharine are safe," Dr. Lashner said. "Sorbitol is not safe. People should look at the labels to see if they are getting something with sorbitol."
The study results were published in the January 12 issue of the British Medical Journal.
