The study found no differences in survival, reproduction or territoriality of male mice on the high-fructose and sucrose diets
Scientists at the University of UTAH discovered that high-fructose corn syrup is more toxic than table sugar in female mice. They fed mice with sugar in doses proportional to what many people eat, the fructose-glucose mixture found in high-fructose corn syrup was found to be more toxic than sucrose or table sugar, reducing both the reproduction and lifespan of female rodents.
"This is the most robust study showing there is a difference between high-fructose corn syrup and table sugar at human-relevant doses," said biology professor Dr Wayne Potts, senior author of the study. The study found no differences in survival, reproduction or territoriality of male mice on the high-fructose and sucrose diets. The researchers speculate that may be because both sugars are equally toxic to male mice.
"We speculate that the different sugars could favour different microbes in the guts of mice. Other research has shown differences in bacterial communities in the gut to be associated with metabolic diseases in rodents and in humans. It's possible one form of sugar causes more bacteria to get across your gut than another," said Dr James Ruff, the study's first author.
It is scheduled for publication in the March 2015 issue of The Journal of Nutrition.
