Medical Bulletin 01/October/2026 - Video

Here are the top medical news for today:

New Study Reveals How Sugar Can Worsen Antibiotic-Related Gut Damage

Eating large amounts of sugar while taking antibiotics may worsen damage to the gut microbiome and allow potentially harmful bacteria to grow, according to a study published in Nature.

Researchers analysed 9,419 meals eaten by 173 hospitalised patients with blood cancers. The team tracked patients’ diets and collected daily stool samples to examine changes in gut bacteria.

They found that for every additional 100 grams of sugar consumed during the 48 hours before antibiotic treatment, gut microbial diversity fell by a further 21%. Lower microbial diversity can make the gut more vulnerable because fewer beneficial bacteria remain to compete with harmful organisms.

The researchers also found that high sugar intake combined with antibiotic treatment was associated with increased levels of Enterococcus faecium, a bacterium linked to difficult-to-treat infections.

Experiments in mice showed a similar pattern. Treatment with the antibiotic biapenem together with dietary sucrose increased Enterococcus levels by 16.3 times by the third day and by 33.4 times by the sixth day compared with controls.

Researchers suggested that dietary sugars may provide surviving bacteria with an energy source that allows them to multiply after antibiotics have removed competing microorganisms. However, it remains unclear whether sugar directly supports Enterococcus, suppresses competing bacteria or affects the microbiome through another mechanism.

The findings are particularly relevant to people with blood cancers because they often receive repeated antibiotics and intensive treatments that can severely disrupt the gut microbiome.

However, the study does not establish that eating sweets directly causes infections or that reducing sugar during antibiotic treatment improves clinical outcomes. The human study was observational and focused on hospitalised cancer patients, while the experimental findings came from mice.

Researchers said clinical trials are now needed to determine whether short-term dietary changes, including reducing simple sugars, can protect the gut microbiome and reduce infection risks during antibiotic treatment.

REFERENCE: Jonas Schluter, et al.; Sugar-rich foods exacerbate antibiotic-induced microbiome disruption; Nature; 2026

Scientists Identify Link Between Excess Dietary Salt and ‘Lean MASH’

High salt intake may contribute to a severe form of fatty liver disease in people with normal body weight, according to a mouse study published in Molecular Metabolism.

Researchers from Duke-NUS Medical School developed a diet-induced mouse model of lean metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis, or lean MASH. This condition can occur in people who do not have obesity and is characterised by liver inflammation and scarring.

The researchers found that excess dietary salt changed how the liver processed fat. Although the diet increased fat breakdown, it also activated immune cells and inflammatory pathways in the liver. This combination produced severe inflammation and fibrosis despite relatively low levels of liver fat.

The findings may help explain why some people with a normal body mass index develop serious liver disease. Lean MASH is becoming increasingly recognised, particularly among Asian populations, but its environmental triggers and biological mechanisms remain poorly understood.

MASH is a progressive form of fatty liver disease that can cause persistent inflammation and scarring. In some patients, it can eventually lead to cirrhosis, liver failure and liver cancer. Cardiovascular disease is also a major cause of death among people with MASH.

The researchers said the findings suggest lean MASH may not simply be the same disease seen in people with obesity. Different biological pathways may contribute to liver injury, which could mean that treatments developed mainly for obesity-associated MASH may not work equally well in lean patients.

However, the findings are based on a mouse model and cannot establish that high salt intake causes lean MASH in humans. Human studies are needed to determine whether the salt-related pathway is relevant to patients.

Further studies could help determine whether patients may benefit from more personalised approaches to diagnosis and treatment.

REFERENCE: Luo, S., et al. (2026). High salt supplementation of a MASH-inducing diet causes lean MASH phenotype with increased hepatic urea cycle activity and EIF5A hypusination. Molecular Metabolism. DOI: 10.1016/j.molmet.2026.102417.

Liverpool Study Examines Long-Term Health Effects of Non-Nutritive Sweetened Soft Drinks

Diet beverages containing non-nutritive sweeteners may be comparable to water for long-term weight management, according to a 104-week randomised controlled trial published in the British Journal of Nutrition.

The SWITCH trial included 493 adults with overweight or obesity who participated in a structured behavioural weight-management programme. Participants were randomly assigned to drink either water or commercially available diet beverages daily. The sweeteners included aspartame, acesulfame potassium and sucralose, at levels within established European safety limits.

After 104 weeks, participants in both groups had reduced their weight. Average weight loss was 4.8 kilograms in the diet beverage group and 3.7 kilograms in the water group, with no statistically significant difference between the groups.

Weight reduction was maintained over two years, including during the final year when participants were no longer receiving the structured intervention. Both groups also showed reductions in waist and hip circumference, improvements in body composition and changes in several metabolic markers.

The researchers found no clinically meaningful differences between the groups in measures such as blood pressure and cholesterol. Sugar intake also decreased in both groups, although the reduction was slightly greater among participants consuming diet beverages.

The findings suggest that replacing sugar-sweetened beverages with drinks containing non-nutritive sweeteners did not lead to greater weight gain or measurable disruption of appetite regulation during the trial.

The findings also provide long-term randomised evidence relevant to ongoing debate about non-sugar sweeteners and weight management.

Importantly, the study does not establish that diet beverages are necessary for weight loss or healthier than water. Water remains a calorie-free option without added sweeteners.

The researchers said further evidence can help inform future guidance on using non-nutritive sweetened beverages as an alternative to sugar-sweetened drinks.

REFERENCE: Harrold, J. A., et al. (2026). Effect of non-nutritive sweetened beverages v . water on body weight: long-term results of a randomised controlled trial. British Journal of Nutrition. DOI: 10.1017/S0007114526108150.

Study Explores Why Do Some People Think About Food Constantly

Frequent experiences of “food noise” were associated with poorer self-rated diet quality and mental health in a study of 1,000 US adults published in Obesity Science & Practice.

Food noise is an increasingly used term describing persistent or intrusive thoughts about food. However, it is not yet a scientifically established or clearly defined condition. Researchers examined how often people identified with the experience and which factors were associated with it.

About 18% of participants reported experiencing food noise often or always, while around 51% experienced it at least sometimes. Women were more likely to report frequent food noise than men, at 22.7% versus 12.7%. Younger adults also reported it more frequently than older participants.

The strongest independent association was loss of control over eating, which was linked to nearly six times higher odds of more frequent food noise. Other associated factors included current use of GLP-1 medicines, recent attempts to lose weight, eating less to change body weight or shape and placing greater importance on social support for dietary changes.

Current GLP-1 users were more likely to report frequent food noise than non-users. However, this finding differs from previous reports suggesting that GLP-1 medicines may reduce food-related thoughts. Researchers said this could reflect selection effects, because people using these medicines may already have greater sensitivity to food cues. Long-term studies are needed to clarify the relationship.

Frequent food noise was also associated with poorer self-rated mental health. Researchers suggested that the experience may overlap with established concepts such as food cravings, food preoccupation and loss of control over eating.

The study was cross-sectional and used a single question to identify food noise, so it cannot establish cause and effect. Researchers said further studies are needed to define food noise, develop reliable measurement tools and determine its clinical significance.

REFERENCE: Hayashi, D., & Masterson, T. D. (2026). Prevalence and Correlates of Perceived Food Noise Among U.S. Adults in a Nationally Representative Sample. Obesity Science & Practice. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/osp4.70201.

Your Voice Could Reveal How Well You’re Aging, New Research Suggests

A machine-learning “speech clock” may estimate chronological age and provide clues about brain ageing and cognition, according to a study published in Science Advances.

Researchers analysed 2,928 Spanish-speaking adults from Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru. Participants included healthy adults and people with mild cognitive impairment, Alzheimer’s disease and frontotemporal dementia.

The researchers used machine learning to analyse hundreds of speech features, including speaking speed, pauses, pitch, vocabulary, meaning and speech organisation. These features were combined to estimate chronological age and calculate a “speech age gap”, showing the difference between actual and speech-predicted age.

A larger speech age gap was associated with markers of accelerated ageing. It was linked to brain age measured through neuroimaging and higher epigenetic age assessed using DNA-methylation clocks.

The speech age gap was also associated with poorer overall cognition, executive function, daily functioning and memory. The associations also extended to non-language cognitive tests, suggesting broader brain effects.

The speech-based measure also differed between clinical groups. Healthy participants had the smallest speech age gaps, while larger gaps were observed among people with Alzheimer’s disease and frontotemporal dementia. In Alzheimer’s disease, the speech measure was also associated with higher plasma p-tau217, a blood biomarker linked to Alzheimer’s pathology.

Speech ageing was additionally associated with greater social disadvantage, including differences in education, financial conditions, food security, healthcare access and early-life experiences.

However, the findings do not establish that an older-appearing speech pattern predicts future dementia. The study was primarily cross-sectional, meaning it cannot determine cause and effect or establish whether speech changes precede cognitive decline.

Researchers said longitudinal studies, validation in additional languages and testing in natural speech settings are needed.

If confirmed, speech-based tools could eventually provide a low-cost, non-invasive method for monitoring ageing and brain health.

REFERENCE: Agustin Ibanez, et al.; Your voice may reveal how fast and how well you’re aging; Science Advances; DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.aef9864