The Truth About Artificial Sweeteners

There has long been a public outcry about the over-abundance of sugar in commercially prepared foods, and with some good reason.  Sugar is a good food preservative and flavor enhancer.  But with the general populations’ dramatic shift to prepared and processed foods, and away from home-prepared meals where sugar is more easily controlled, there has been a corresponding rise in health conditions aggravated by high sugar intake.

To combat this, the Food and Drug Administration is constantly under pressure to accept sugar alternatives.  There are several natural alternatives on the market, but there are some problems.  Though they may sweeten like sugar, they are not sugar.  So they may react differently with other substances, or with heat.  This limits the uses they are good for, and may affect the flavor or texture of the foods in which they are used.  The ones that are the same as sugar, like beet sugar and cane sugar,  also have the same problems, making them no better.  And some are difficult or costly to produce.

Years ago scientists began synthesizing artificial sweeteners that would act the same, sweeten the same, and be cost effective.  Government agencies jumped on the band wagon, and companies fell over each other selling ‘diet’ or ‘lite’ products with these new and healthier alternatives.  Unfortunately, as the years go by, we are now finding they are not so healthy after all.

One of the main issues with artificial sweeteners is that they have no energy value like sugar does.  Essentially, the theory is that the body recognizes the sweetness and produces insulin, which removes blood glucose and stores it in the body tissue.  But since there was no actual rise in blood sugar, this causes hypoglycemia and a craving for food.  Studies with rats and mice have shown that constant usage of artificial sweeteners actually produced fatter rats over time, with those rats constantly looking for more and more food.  A similar study was conducted with humans regularly drinking diet soda, and showed the same results.

The three primary compounds in the United States are saccharin, used in Sweet’N Low; aspartame, used in Equal and NutraSweet; and sucralose, used in Splenda and Altern.  A fourth, Cyclamate, one of the first artificial sweeteners approved in the United States, is now banned as some studies have suggest a link to bladder cancer and testicular degeneration, although those tests are not conclusive.  It is still popular in other countries, however.

Saccharin

Saccharin has been in use the longest, and became very popular during World War I when sugar shortages were widespread.  Originally discovered as a plant native to China, scientists learned how to synthesize it instead of cultivating it.  Laboratory testing has suggested it to be a carcinogen, but has not been able to conclusively prove any direct link in humans.  It also has an unpleasant aftertaste, and to combat this it is often used together with aspartame, which negates the bitterness but has complex health issues.  Of all the synthetically-produced sweeteners, however, Saccharin has proven to be the safest one.  Health problems attributed to it have always found it to be blended with another sweetener like Aspartame.

Aspartame

Aspartame was pushed through by lobbyists when the Saccharin controversies were at their height, and Cyclamate had just been banned.  Though popular for a long time, researchers and doctors are now voicing health concerns, citing the fact that the incidence of brain tumors have risen in a number that corresponds to the rise in Aspartame usage.  Also some disturbing studies have suggested that aspartame breaks down in the body and allows neurotoxins to enter the brain barrier, causing all sorts of problems from depression to Grave’s Disease.  More and more nutritionists are seeing dramatic upswings in children, citing aggressive behavior, mood swings, depression and other health and behavioral problems sharply declining when aspartame products are removed from their diets.   These products often include other sweeteners like ACESULFAME-K, NEOTAME, SUCRALOSE, and ALITAME.

Sucralose

The main risk with Sucralose is that it is formulated with chlorine.  Do we really want chlorine in our bodies?  Though the chemical compound does not mix with fat and is mostly flushed out of the system without being metabolized, the term ‘mostly’ means that some of the chemical is not flushed safely away.  There have been no long-term studies completed as yet, so the truth is nobody knows how safe this chemical actually is.  Also, it is sold in a powder form that is either sodium-based or calcium-based.  Either of those products have their own health risks.

The bottom line is that all these products are chemicals that we as consumers are ingesting.  We need to think healthy, not artificial.  Deleting sugar causes as many health issues as too much sugar.  Deleting salt can kill you, but so can too much salt.  Mixing chemicals in with our food certainly is not the answer.  The most effective diet is one of moderation; with food products that you control so you know what’s in it.  Since that’s not always possible in today’s society, we must at least try to stay away from artificial and chemical food if we want to stay healthy.

Sources

Wikipedia.org, “sugar substitutes”; “Cyclamate”; “Saccharin”;

Health Sentinel.com

Splenda Exposed.com, copyright 05-08, Janet Starr Hull PhD, CN