SUGAR SUBSTITUTE HURTS YOUR HEART

SWAPPING sugar-filled foods and beverages for treats using the artificial sweetener erythritol may boost your odds of experiencing life-threatening heart attacks and strokes, according to a shocking new study.

“The degree of risk was not modest,” cautions Cleveland Clinic Lerner Research Institute researcher Dr. Stanley Hazen.

Hazen says the link between erythritol and cardiovascular issues was discovered accidentally. His team was investigating chemicals or compounds that might predict the risk of heart attack or stroke. The  scientists analyzed 1,157 blood samples, which were collected from 2004 to 2011.

He explains, “We found a substance that seemed to play a big role. It was erythritol.”