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A five-year study published in Nature found that eating sugary foods while on antibiotics significantly worsens gut microbiome disruption in blood cancer patients. For every 100g increase in sweets consumed after antibiotic exposure, bacterial diversity dropped an additional 24%. Researchers say the findings may have implications beyond cancer patients — for anyone taking antibiotics.
A major five-year study published in Nature has found that consuming sugar-rich foods while on antibiotics dramatically amplifies damage to the gut microbiome — and the consequences can be life-threatening for blood cancer patients. Researchers from NYU Langone Health, Memorial Sloan Kettering, and City of Hope tracked nearly 9,500 meals eaten by 173 blood cancer patients undergoing stem cell transplantation, pairing detailed dietary data with stool sample analysis.
The culprit? Sweets — including sports drinks and nutritional shakes commonly recommended to transplant patients — appeared to feed harmful surviving bacteria like Enterococcus faecium, a drug-resistant pathogen linked to deadly hospital infections. Mouse studies backed up the findings, showing a 16-fold spike in Enterococcus by day three of a high-sugar, antibiotic diet.
By the Numbers:
Why it matters: These findings suggest a simple, actionable intervention — cutting back on sugar during antibiotic treatment — could help protect the gut microbiome, reduce infection risk, and potentially improve outcomes for cancer patients and healthy individuals alike.
