Effect of the Natural Sweeteners Erythritol and Xylitol on Gut Microbiota and Glucose Metabolism in Obese Volunteers

July 16, 2025 updated by: University Hospital, Basel, Switzerland
Sugar alcohols such as xylitol and erythritol are increasingly popular as sugar substitutes in the food industry and are also recommended to diabetic patients. Both substances are already in use in the food industry and are freely available. Since the 1970s, beneficial effects on oral health could be demonstrated as oral bacteria were influenced positively. Animal studies showed an increase in gut Clostridium perfringens after xylitol intake; certainly a non-desirable effect. However, studies on effects of erythritol and xylitol on the human gut microbiota are lacking so far. In this trial, investigators aim to examine whether gut microbiota and glucose tolerance can be influenced by polyol intake in a non-diabetic but obese cohort.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
64

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • Norway
      • Oslo, Norway
        • Department of Endocrinology, Morbid Obesity and Preventive Medicine, Oslo University Hospital
  • Russian Federation
      • Stavropol, Russian Federation
        • Endoscopic and Minimally Invasive Surgery Clinic of Stavropol State Medical University
  • Switzerland
      • Basel, Switzerland, CH-4016
        • St Claraspital

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years to 55 years (Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Obese volunteers (BMI > 30kg/m2)
  • Aged 18- max. 55 years
  • Otherwise healthy.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Known cardiovascular disease
  • Diabetes mellitus
  • Arterial Hypertension with medication
  • Dyslipidaemia with medication
  • Known chronic hepatic disease (NASH, hepatitis).
  • Known renal disease: kidney failure
  • Pregnancy
  • Intake of proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) on a regular basis
  • Intake of antibiotics within the last 3 months before inclusion
  • Intake of pro or prebiotics
  • Chronical diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, history of gastrointestinal surgery with major changes to the gastrointestinal tract
  • Substance abuse, alcohol abuse.
  • Inability to follow procedures due to psychological disorders, dementia or insufficient knowledge of project language (German).

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Basic Science
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
No Intervention: Control
20 obese, non-diabetic candidates will serve as control-group. All assessments are carried out just as in the intervention groups.
Active Comparator: E967-Xylitol
20 obese, non-diabetic candidates will receive a daily dose of 24g of xylitol.
Dietary supplement: E967-Xylitol
Other Names:
  • Xylitol
Active Comparator: E968-Erythritol
20 obese, non-diabetic candidates will receive a daily dose of 36g of erythritol.
Dietary supplement: E968-Erythritol
Other Names:
  • Erythritol

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Time Frame
Glucose tolerance measured with oral glucose tolerance test
Time Frame: change from baseline to 8 weeks after polyol intake
change from baseline to 8 weeks after polyol intake

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Human gut microbiota composition measured with metagenomic shotgun sequencing
Time Frame: change from baseline to 8 weeks after polyol intake
change from baseline to 8 weeks after polyol intake
Gut microbial-related metabolites in feces
Time Frame: change from baseline to 8 weeks after polyol intake
Metabolomic analysis of the bacterial metabolites present in the feces by combining nuclear magnetic resonance (1H-NMR) and mass spectrometry
change from baseline to 8 weeks after polyol intake
Gastrointestinal tolerance assessed by questionnaire
Time Frame: change from baseline to 8 weeks after polyol intake
Gastrointestinal Symptoms Rating Scale (Svedlund et al)
change from baseline to 8 weeks after polyol intake
Gut microbial-related metabolites in urine
Time Frame: change from baseline to 8 weeks after polyol intake
Metabolomic analysis of the bacterial metabolites present in the urine by combining nuclear magnetic resonance (1H-NMR) and mass spectrometry
change from baseline to 8 weeks after polyol intake

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
University Hospital, Basel, Switzerland

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Study Chair: Christoph Beglinger, MD, St. Claraspital klinische Forschungsabteilung

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
June 1, 2016

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
February 1, 2020

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
February 1, 2020

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
June 27, 2016

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
July 1, 2016

First Posted (Estimated)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
July 6, 2016

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
July 20, 2025

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
July 16, 2025

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
March 1, 2020

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • Poly Gut

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

UNDECIDED

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

Cookie Settings

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. For more details carefully read our Privacy and Cookies Policy. ...>>>You can change your preferences or withdraw your consent at any time by deleting the cookies from your website or computer as described in the policy. Please accept it and choose your preferences by ticking the corresponding boxes in the "Manage Settings" section below. Please carefully read our Terms of Service before you proceed with using any part of this website.
«Manage Settings