Fructooligosaccharide gut tolerance tested up to 40 g a day
What it found
In 116 healthy volunteers, short-chain fructooligosaccharides from sugar beet caused only mild gut symptoms at doses up to 40 g a day, and stools stayed normal.
Most people said they were satisfied with their gut comfort.
What they found
Studies in people
Gut symptoms
Bloating, rumbling, flatulence and abdominal pain rose slightly during fructooligosaccharide intake at all doses tested. The average scores stayed between no symptom and mild, except flatulence, which reached a top average score of 1.19 at 20 g a day.
Heartburn and nausea
Heartburn, acid reflux, nausea and vomiting had very low average scores, below 0.1, with no significant difference between the baseline week and the weeks taking fructooligosaccharides.
Stool consistency
Stool consistency improved slightly compared with baseline at every dose, and rose further between 20 and 40 g a day. Average scores stayed between 3 and 5 on the Bristol stool scale, so no diarrhoea appeared up to 40 g a day.
Stool frequency
People passed between 1 and 2 stools a day on average. Stool frequency rose significantly at 40 g a day compared with 20 g a day.
Satisfaction
At day 14, 78.9% of the 15 g group and 64.9% of the 20 g group said they were quite to very satisfied with their gut comfort. At day 21, after the dose doubled, the figures were similar: 75.5% and 64.9%.
Other events
Four non-gut events were reported: urinary tract infection and menstrual disorder in the 15 g group at 30 g a day, and acne and weight loss in the 20 g group at 40 g a day. The authors considered these unrelated to the product.
What the authors conclude
“In conclusion, scFOS intake is well tolerated up to 40 g/d in healthy subjects.”
Also in their conclusions
- They conclude that short-chain fructooligosaccharides are well tolerated up to 40 g a day in healthy subjects.
- They say that thanks to their short chains and unique composition, these prebiotic fibres are much better tolerated than other inulin-type fructans with longer chains.
- They advise that digestive tolerance of fibres should be considered when fibres are added to foods and drinks.
How it was done
Many people in Europe eat less fibre than recommended, and adding prebiotic fibres to foods could help. The authors wanted to know how well short-chain fructooligosaccharides are tolerated at higher doses, since other inulin-type fibres with longer chains are less well tolerated.
They studied 116 healthy French volunteers aged 18 to 50 for three weeks. In week one everyone ate their usual diet; in week two half took 15 g and half took 20 g of short-chain fructooligosaccharides daily; in week three the dose was doubled for everyone. Each day, people recorded eight gut symptoms, stool consistency and stool frequency on a smartphone app.
What it can’t tell you
- This was an observational study without a placebo group, so it cannot prove that the fructooligosaccharides caused the symptoms recorded.
- The volunteers were healthy adults aged 18 to 50, so the results may not apply to children, older people or people with gut conditions.
- People knew which dose they were taking, which can affect how symptoms are reported.
Who paid
- Funding
- Funded by Tereos (from the PubMed record).
- Conflicts
- C.L.B. and C.M. are employees of Tereos, funding the study, at the time of writing the manuscript. F.H., F.R. and C.J. are employees of the Contract Research Organization CEN (CEN Nutriment Unit), which received funding to conduct the study. CEN derives no direct financial benefit from the results of this research.
The paper
- Title
- Gastrointestinal Tolerance of Short-Chain Fructo-Oligosaccharides from Sugar Beet: An Observational, Connected, Dose-Ranging Study in Healthy Volunteers
- Type
- Study
- Evidence
- Studies in people
- Summarised from
- Full text
- Cite
- Le Bourgot C, Rigaudier F, Juhel C, Herpin F, Meunier C (2022). Gastrointestinal Tolerance of Short-Chain Fructo-Oligosaccharides from Sugar Beet: An Observational, Connected, Dose-Ranging Study in Healthy Volunteers. Nutrients. doi:10.3390/nu14071461Free full textPubMed 35406074DOI
Summary written 26 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error