Genetic flaw might be key to stopping people craving sugary treats – study

Sign up for our free Health Check email to receive exclusive analysis on the week in health Get our free Health Check email Get our free Health Check email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Our study suggests that genetic variation in our ability to digest dietary sucrose may impact not only how much sucrose we eat, but how much we like sugary foods Dr Peter Aldiss Dr Peter Aldiss, now a group leader in the School of Medicine at the University of Nottingham, said: “Excess calories from sugar are an established contributor to obesity and type 2 diabetes. “Now, our study suggests that genetic variation in our ability to digest dietary sucrose may impact not only how much sucrose we eat, but how much we like sugary foods.” The team of experts began by investigating dietary behaviour in mice lacking the SI gene. They found that people with a complete inability to digest dietary sucrose in Greenland consumed significantly less sucrose-rich foods, while those with a defective, partially functional SI gene in the UK liked sucrose-rich foods less. “In the future, understanding how defects in the SI gene act to reduce the intake, and preference, of dietary sucrose will facilitate the development of novel therapeutics to help curb population-wide sucrose intake to improve digestive and metabolic health.” The study, led by Dr Aldiss, alongside Assistant Professor Mette K Andersen, at the Novo Nordisk Foundation Centre for Basic Metabolic Research in Copenhagen and Professor Mauro D’Amato at CIC bioGUNE in Spain and LUM University in Italy, is published in the Gastroenterology journal.