What happens when mice eat a common food preservative for a long time?
Effects of potassium sorbate on systemic inflammation and gut microbiota in normal mice: A comparison of continuous intake and washout period
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Mice ate a food preservative called potassium sorbate for 10 weeks. Their livers got a little inflamed and one inflammation marker went up, but their weight and blood sugar didn’t change. After stopping it for 5 weeks, the inflammation went down and some good gut bacteria came back.
Surprising Findings
Potassium sorbate increased liver inflammation and IL-1β without increasing short-chain fatty acids, despite altering gut microbiota.
It’s commonly assumed that microbiome changes lead to increased beneficial metabolites like SCFAs—this study shows that’s not always true, even with known 'good' bacteria like Lachnospiraceae_NK4A136_group appearing later.
Practical Takeaways
Consider reducing processed foods with potassium sorbate for 5 weeks to see if you feel better—especially if you have liver or gut issues.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Mice ate a food preservative called potassium sorbate for 10 weeks. Their livers got a little inflamed and one inflammation marker went up, but their weight and blood sugar didn’t change. After stopping it for 5 weeks, the inflammation went down and some good gut bacteria came back.
Surprising Findings
Potassium sorbate increased liver inflammation and IL-1β without increasing short-chain fatty acids, despite altering gut microbiota.
It’s commonly assumed that microbiome changes lead to increased beneficial metabolites like SCFAs—this study shows that’s not always true, even with known 'good' bacteria like Lachnospiraceae_NK4A136_group appearing later.
Practical Takeaways
Consider reducing processed foods with potassium sorbate for 5 weeks to see if you feel better—especially if you have liver or gut issues.
Publication
Journal
Food and Chemical Toxicology
Year
2024
Authors
Nanhai Xiao, Shengyue Ruan, Qiufen Mo, Minjie Zhao, Tao Liu, Fengqin Feng
Related Content
Claims (6)
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.
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.
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.
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.
Giving mice a common food preservative called potassium sorbate for 10 weeks didn’t change their blood sugar, fat levels, or the size of their organs and fat stores.