Groundbreaking study: What happens in the body when you eat sweets while on antibiotics? | Watch

A new study in Nature reveals that combining sugar with antibiotic treatment creates a destructive chain reaction in the digestive system. Antibiotics eliminate essential gut bacteria, and sugar serves as an accelerating fuel for harmful bacteria, including Enterococcus faecium, which can cause severe infections and even sepsis. The study was based on hospitalized cancer patients.

A groundbreaking new study published in the journal Nature reveals that combining sugar with antibiotic treatment creates a destructive chain reaction in the digestive system. While antibiotics eliminate essential gut bacteria, sugar serves as an accelerating fuel that encourages wild growth of harmful bacteria, including Enterococcus faecium, which can multiply 33-fold within days. In severe cases, this bacterium can leak into the bloodstream and cause sepsis. The study was based on an experiment with hospitalized cancer patients undergoing intensive treatments and taking prolonged antibiotics. The data showed that for every increase in sweet consumption, gut bacterial diversity dropped by about 24%, and patients who ate more sugar experienced about a 12% increase in mortality risk after bone marrow transplantation. The lead researchers recommended avoiding foods and drinks high in added sugar while taking antibiotics.