After stopping potassium sorbate (a food preservative) for five weeks, mice had more of a certain good gut bacteria and made more of a chemical called isobutyric acid.

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Evidence from Studies

Supporting (1)

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Community contributions welcome

7

Effects of potassium sorbate on systemic inflammation and gut microbiota in normal mice: A comparison of continuous intake and washout period

Cohort Study

Animal

2024 Feb

The study gave mice a food preservative for 10 weeks, then stopped it for 5 weeks — and found that after stopping, good gut bacteria and a helpful acid increased, just like the claim said.

Contradicting (0)

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No contradicting evidence found

Gold Standard Evidence Needed

According to GRADE and EBM methodology, here is what ideal scientific evidence would look like to definitively prove or disprove this specific claim, ordered from strongest to weakest evidence.

Source Study

Effects of potassium sorbate on systemic inflammation and gut microbiota in normal mice: A comparison of continuous intake and washout period

Score: 7

DOI: 10.1016/j.fct.2024.114443

Similar Assertions

If mice eat potassium sorbate for 10 weeks and then stop for 5 weeks, their livers become less inflamed and have less of a certain inflammatory chemical in their blood than if they kept eating it the whole time.

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If you give healthy mice a common food preservative called potassium sorbate for 10 weeks, it doesn’t make more of the good gut bacteria chemicals called short-chain fatty acids.

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79%

If you give healthy mice a common food preservative called potassium sorbate every day for 10 weeks at fairly high doses, their livers might show more signs of inflammation and higher levels of a specific inflammation chemical, but their body weight, fat, and blood sugar/fat levels don’t change much.

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