Comparison of Anti-Obesity Effect between Two Types of Syrup Containing Rare Sugars in Wistar Rats

D-Allulose-containing rare sugar sweeteners have been categorized into two types, rare sugar syrup (RSS), consisting of 4 rare monosaccharides, and modified glucose syrup (MGS), rich in D-allulose, which was previously referred to D-psicose. The anti-obesity effect of RSS and D-allulose has been already clarified, but that of rare monosaccharides other than D-allulose in RSS has not yet been well understood. Here, we investigated and compared the anti-obesity effect of RSS and MGS in rats. Male Wistar rats were divided into 4 dietary groups: a high-sucrose control diet group (S), a high-fructose corn syrup diet group (HFCS), an RSS diet group (RSS), and an MGS diet group (MGS). RSS significantly suppressed abdominal adipose tissue weight and total body fat accumulation in comparison to sucrose. On the other hand, MGS reduced body weight gain, but not abdominal fat accumulation, relative to sucrose. The weight of the liver and kidneys was significantly higher in the RSS and MGS groups than in the S and HFCS groups, but serum biochemical parameters and hepatic lipids contents were not significantly different among the groups. The present study shows that two types of D-allulose-containing rare sugar sweeteners can suppress body fat accumulation or weight gain in a different manner and that RSS could be used as more effective sweeteners in place of sucrose and HFCS to maintain healthy body weight.