Artificial Sweeteners
We have work to do on every single one of the artificial sweeteners, It’s ridiculous how understudied they are - Kimber Stanhope
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Everything you never wanted to know about artificial sweeteners
There are a lot of myths about artificial sweeteners. The main one is that they’re actually better for you than regular sugar. Low-calorie sweeteners have been around for decades now, and we’re finally at a point where we’ve studied them enough to understand roughly how they work and what effect they have on our bodies...
A few recent studies suggest that consuming fake sugar actually trains your insulin response to store more fat, not less. Basically when you consume real sugar, your tastebuds send an alert to your pancreas that says, “Hey, calories are on the way! Prepare to produce insulin!”
Resources
A Brief and Bizarre History of Artificial Sweeteners
Synthetic sweeteners seem like a miracle food. They require no land for growing, no smoke-belching refineries, and most of them pass through your body unmetabolized, which is what makes them zero-calorie and safe for diabetics, since they don’t affect blood sugar levels. The perfect food of the future. If only.
Why The WHO Is Reinforcing Its Warning About Sugar Substitutes
The World Health Organization (WHO) recently issued a draft guideline recommending against the use of non-sugar sweeteners for weight loss and management, citing long-term health effects, among other factors,..
The Ugly Truth about Artificial Sweeteners & Sugar Alcohols
Aspartame? Acesulfame potassium? Neotame? Saccharin? Sucralose? These seemingly irrelevant (and often mispronounced) words might have a larger impact on your body than you thought.
It’s Really Hard to Study Artificial Sweeteners
The health effects of saccharin, aspartame, and sucralose can be nearly impossible to tease apart from the impact of everything else people eat alongside them.
Sorry, but artificial sweeteners won’t help you lose weight
Quit now while you still can.
The Future of Artificial Sweetener
Whether or not artificial sweeteners do more harm than good, however, remains a topic of debate with frequent tectonic-sized shifts in opinion. The argument has become particularly concentrated around diet soda, which takes the prize for the largest share of the "sugar free" consumables market.
The price of ‘sugar free’: are sweeteners as harmless as we thought?
We know we need to cut down on sugar. But replacing it with artificial compounds isn’t necessarily the answer.
These Sweeteners Don't Contain Erythritol, to Keep Your Food Sweet and Safe
“Erythritol looks like sugar, it tastes like sugar, and you can bake with it,” Hazen continued. “It’s become the sweetheart of the food industry, an extremely popular additive to keto and other low-carb products and foods marketed to people with diabetes... Some of the diabetes-labeled foods we looked at had more erythritol than any other item by weight.” That said, here are sweeteners that don't contain erythritol.
Too Good to Be True? The Skinny on Alternative Sweeteners
Let’s face it, sugar is delicious—especially if you have a sweet tooth. But it’s clear a diet high in sugar isn’t great for your health or weight. Alternative sweeteners or sugar substitutes have emerged in recent decades as an option to cut back on table sugar while still enjoying the same sweet sensation. The truth, though, is a lot more complicated.
Zero-Calorie Sweeteners Are Making You Fat
In some cases, research shows they may be even worse for you than real sugar.
Cyclamate, an Artificial Sweetener for the Rest of the World
If you're wondering why we don't have cyclamate these days, you can thank the Sugar Association, an industry group formed in 1943 to protect sugar's image from government rationing programs. Cyclamate cost 90% less than sugar and sweetened just as well. What to do if you're the sugar industry? Form the International Sugar Research Foundation and fund shady research looking to cast cyclamate as the bad guy.
Truvia Vs Stevia: Which is better?
The debate between Truvia Vs Stevia as to which of them is better is more than just a matter of a few calories. Both of them are marketed as a substitute to high caloric and sugar-laden table sugar. Both of these are considered healthier options in comparison to other natural sweeteners like neotame, aspartame and acesulfame potassium. Therefore, the bottom line is that whether you take stevia or Truvia, you don’t have to worry whether these artificial sweeteners are safe or not. Having said this, there are some fine distinctions between Truvia and Stevia.
Why Thyroid Patients Should Avoid Artificial Sweeteners
As a thyroid patient, and someone who wants to avoid sugar, you may think that you are making a good health decision when you reach for that pink, yellow, or blue packet of artificial sweetener, instead of sugar. Think again!
Artificial Sweeteners, Not Good, Not Bad
Sugar substitutes offered no health benefits, but they didn’t do any harm, either, a review of studies found.
You Asked: What's the Healthiest Sweetener?
You’ve heard sugar is bad news. But what about all those low-cal or no-cal substitutes? And organic honey! That has to be healthier, right?
A popular sugar additive may have fueled the spread of not one but two superbugs
Trehalose, a sugar that is added to a wide range of food products, could have allowed certain strains of Clostridium difficile to become far more virulent than they were before, a new study finds.
Artificial Sweeteners and Cancer
Concerns about artificial sweeteners and cancer initially arose when early studies linked the combination of cyclamate plus saccharin (and, to a lesser extent, cyclamate alone) with the development of bladder cancer in laboratory animals, particularly male rats. As a result of these findings, cyclamate was banned in the United States in 1969. Although later reviews of those experimental data and evaluation of additional data led scientists to conclude that cyclamate does not cause cancer, it has not been reapproved in the United States (although it is approved in many other countries).
Artificial sweeteners as a sugar substitute: Are they really safe?
Nonnutritive sweeteners (NNS) have become an important part of everyday life and are increasingly used nowadays in a variety of dietary and medicinal products. They provide fewer calories and far more intense sweetness than sugar-containing products and are used by a plethora of population subsets for varying objectives. The overall use of NNS remains controversial, and consumers should be amply informed about the potential risks of using them, based on current evidence-based dietary guidelines.
Artificial Sweeteners Don't Help People Lose Weight, Review Finds
The theory behind artificial sweeteners is simple: If you use them instead of sugar, you get the joy of sweet-tasting beverages and foods without the downer of extra calories, potential weight gain and related health issues. In practice, it's not so simple...
Artificial Sweeteners May Contribute to Metabolic Disorders
Evidence suggests sugar substitutes aggravate diabetes and obesity.
Artificial sweeteners may make you fat
When consumed in low quantities, artificial sweeteners have been shown to aid weight loss, improve metabolic conditions and even protect against injury during infection. However, this new study suggests that, rather than keeping us healthy, artificial sweeteners, especially when consumed in larger doses, could be contributing to the obesity epidemic.
Artificial sweeteners raise risk of type 2 diabetes, study suggests
Research shows sugar substitutes may affect body’s ability to control glucose levels, but its conclusions are contested.
Artificial Sweeteners: Sweet or Sour?
Artificial sweeteners may be good for us – think about our ongoing battle against diabetes, obesity and tooth decay. But is there a sour – or even a bitter side to these sugar substitutes?
Being Happy With Sugar
Popular media are full of claims that sugar is toxic. And there’s intense disagreement about recommendations to replace table sugar and high-fructose corn syrup with “natural” sweeteners like agave nectar or fruit juice. What to make of it all?
Can Artificial Sweeteners Keep Us From Gaining Weight?
Sugar substitutes may help stave off weight gain, but they have metabolic effects that some experts find concerning.
Did America Get Fat by Drinking Diet Soda?
A high-profile study points the finger at artificial sweeteners.
Low-calorie sweeteners don’t help with weight loss — and may lead to gained pounds
Low-calorie sweeteners may not help with weight loss, but more research is needed to understand whether they cause health issues, and why.
Not-So-Sweet Side Effects of Artificial Sweeteners
Well, we don't necessarily think that it's making people want more sweetener but instead, what it's doing is making it so that when people taste something sweet that does deliver sugar and calories, they don't have as strong an ability to deal with that. So they drink a regular soda, or they eat a piece of fruit - anything that tastes sweet and does provide the sugar and calories - and their bodies can't anticipate that those are going to show up.
Saccharin solution?
Sugar substitutes may mess with gut bacteria—causing obesity in the process.
Stevia: Is It Safe?
I got really excited the first time I discovered stevia--the super-sweet plant that is being called on to sweeten all sorts of products now. It's 200 times sweeter than sugar, and it seemed like a great (all-natural and calorie-free!) alternative to artificial sweeteners, but I quickly learned that stevia isn't free of controversy. And, now there are new, and kind of alarming, health concerns to consider.
Study: diet soda can really mess with your metabolism
New research helps explain why artificial sweeteners are linked to obesity and metabolic disease.
Sugar vs. Artificial Sweeteners
Has anyone compared different sweeteners (artificial or natural) for their environmental impacts?
Sugar-Free Blues: Everything You Wanted to Know About Artificial Sweeteners
A cursory glance down the aisles of any grocery store these days will reveal a host of sugar-free, low-calorie products, all promising to be the dieter’s best friend. Readers of Wise Traditions may already know that the words “sugar-free” on a product label frequently translate into “DO NOT TAKE INTERNALLY–CONTAINS ASPARTAME,” but what about all of the other sugar substitutes out there?
Sweet As . . . Sucralose: The Pros and Cons of Artificial Sweeteners
This article is a basic overview of artificial sweeteners, including what they are, why they are popular, and how they affect health. It is specifically intended for people with diabetes, individuals interested in lowering caloric intake, and other consumers wondering whether or not they should be worried about using artificial sweeteners.
Sweeteners may be linked to increased cancer risk – new research
Sweeteners have long been suggested to be bad for our health. Studies have linked consuming too many sweeteners with conditions such as obesity, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. But links with cancer have been less certain.
Sweeteners: Time to rethink your choices?
When it comes to low-calorie sweeteners, you have a lot of choices. There’s the blue one, the pink one, the yellow one, or the green one. Whichever one you choose, know that scientists have probably studied it extensively. What they’ve found may surprise you.
The Accidental Discovery of Saccharin, and the Truth About Whether Saccharin is Bad for You
Saccharin is noted as being the first artificial sweetener, outside of the toxic Lead(II) acetate, and the first product to offer a cheap alternative to cane sugar. Interestingly enough, like the Chocolate Chip Cookie, it was also discovered entirely by accident.
The Case Against Artificial Sweeteners Is Getting Stronger
They’re supposed to be a way to have the proverbial cake and, literally, eat it too: all the sweet taste without the calories and the metabolic health problems that come with sugar. But it turns out that artificial sweeteners may be too good to be true, more and more studies are finding.
The Claim: Artificial Sweeteners Can Raise Blood Sugar
Most artificial sweeteners saccharin, aspartame and sucralose, for example offer the sweetness of sugar without the calories. They contain no carbohydrates, and so have no effect on blood sugar. But these sweeteners are sometimes paired in “sugar free” products with another sugar substitute called sugar alcohols.
The Miracle Berry Could Be a Miracle
The miracle berry really is a bit miraculous in its effect and is certainly a good bit of fun as well. Ultimately it may even turn out to be beneficial to both dieters and diabetics.
The NEW Truth About Artificial Sweeteners
Not sure how to sweeten your morning coffee? While your best bet is to use nothing at all (after a few weeks, you'll probably like it better that way), new research on artificial sweeteners has broadened your options once again. The FDA has given the thumbs-up to sucralose (Splenda), aspartame (Nutrasweet) and even saccharin (Sweet'N Low), which was once warned to possibly cause cancer in rats.
What Happens When Chemists Don't Wash Their Hands
Three different artificial sweeteners have been the result of scientists with poor hand hygiene..
What’s the difference between sugar, other natural sweeteners and artificial sweeteners? A food chemist explains sweet science
A quick walk down the drink aisle of any corner store reveals the incredible ingenuity of food scientists in search of sweet flavors. In some drinks you’ll find sugar. A diet soda might have an artificial or natural low-calorie sweetener. And found in nearly everything else is high fructose corn syrup, the king of U.S. sweetness.
Why One Cardiologist Has Drunk His Last Diet Soda
New research, however, has raised the very real possibility that the non-sugar sweeteners that put the “diet” in diet drinks (and many low-calorie foods), may have been conspiring against me.
Why You May Want to Ditch Artificial Sweeteners (And, 3 Smart Ways to Stop Sweet Cravings)
"When you are consuming alternative sweeteners, you are trying to fool your body," she writes. "And guess what? It doesn't work. Your body knows what you are giving it is fake, so instead of being satisfied, it continues to send the signal that it wants to consume something sweet."
Everything you never wanted to know about artificial sweeteners
Your diet soda might just be worse than a regular one.
Masters of Social Gastronomy
Must-Reads on HFCS, Sugar and Sweeteners
NutritionFacts.org
In terms of nutritional value, sugar and corn syrup are roughly equal in that they have basically no nutritional value. High fructose corn syrup, however, has been found to be contaminated with mercury and should probably be avoided. Two sweeteners, black strap molasses and date sugar (just powdered whole dates), do actually have significant nutritional value. Most artificial sweeteners have been linked to health problems, at least in rare cases. Stevia appears to be harmless as long as you don’t consume too much.
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