Just a little chocolate . . .

I often have friends and clients ask about artificial sweeteners, especially diet soda and if it is okay to consume. In general, I believe in moderation so the first thing I ask is how much they are consuming. The second thing I ask is how much they enjoy the product they are consuming. If someone shrugs and says “somewhat” then I know we can find a substitution for a more nutritious product without much struggle. If someone says it is the highlight on their day then we need to discuss the situation in more detail (how much are they consuming, why, when etc.).

I very rarely consume artificial sweeteners for a variety of reasons.First, I am sensitive to the sweetness or over sweetness of artificial sweeteners and do not like the taste of artificially sweetened products and I do not eat anything I do not like – what is the point of that? Second, diet sodas in particular give me a stomach ache and heartburn and a side effect of artificial sweeteners can be gastrointestinal issues so keep an eye on this. Third, read below.

What does the research show and should you consume artificially sweetened products? I will give you a quick snapshot of the research.

There are two main areas that concern most people and have been the main areas of research:  weight gain and cancer

You may have heard it before that diet soda and artificially sweetened products can actually cause weight gain. Is this true and how?

A 2008 study out of Purdue University found that mice fed an artificial sweetener (saccharin) in yogurt had more weight gain than mice fed yogurt with glucose (a simple sugar). The researchers conducted 3 experiments to explore whether ingesting saccharin modified the mice’s ability to regulate food intake as well as physiological experiments to see if there was a change in core body temperature after ingesting the artificial sweetener. (1) They found that there is in fact a change in metabolic activity and brain chemistry. It occurs because when we eat something sweet the body is expecting calories to come in and when there are no calories this “mismatch” of information is confusing to the body.

The body needs to judge the calorie content of what is being consumed in order to have an adequate metabolic response.When food is ingested the core body temperature increases therefore providing a metabolic “rev” to start breaking down the food for energy. If an artificial sweetener is consumed and there are no calories present then the body does not have a raise in core temp (in mice) and the metabolism does not increase,  therefore can be more prone to stay in a storage mode vs. a burning mode. 

Consuming artificial sweeteners can change the bodies ability to regulate consumption since our bodies are expecting calories and if we do not receive them, then this disrupts the body’s ability to regulate incoming calories. The Purdue study found that the mice fed artificial sweeteners ate more calories overall. Human survey studies (not as reliable as clinical studies) show that people who consume even 1 diet soda per day can be significantly more overweight than those who do not. There is a parallel between the rise of artificial sweetener use and the rising obesity rates and this could be in part explained by the impairment of self-regulation.  Are artificial sweeteners the cause of obesity epidemic? Of course not but the research is intriguing and could very well be part of the problem.

Does this give you license to start drinking regular soda? No. Most doctors, specialists, and experts in varying health fiends agree that eating whole foods in their most natural form is best for you and your health and this applies to the additives in your foods as well. High-fructose corn syrup added to your favorite soda  is not very close to what you can find in nature and remember, excess sugar intake is linked to heart disease and diabetes independent of its effect on weight gain.

Cancer:

Aspartame (brand names NutraSweet and Equal- in most diet drinks) is FDA approved to be a safe substance to consume however, there are and have been for years (approved in 1970) conflicting scientific results regarding its safety.  Several studies have shown that aspartame is a possible carcinogen (cancer-causing) and a large study in mice show that mice fed aspartame vs. regular sugar had higher rates of cancer. The amount fed to mice would be equivalent to 4-5 20 oz diet sodas per day for a 150 pound person.  Take note that these studies were done in mice and have not been confirmed in humans.  This is a hotly debated and controversial topic and I did not want to write pages about research studies and theories regarding the link between cancer and artificial sweeteners. If you are please go to the link below for a great NY times article. (3)

A new sweetener, sucralose (Splenda) is chemically derived from sugar but is paired with chemicals (chlorine) and it is assumed to be safe and FDA claims it is safe but the interactions of the chemicals are unknown in humans even though people argue that it is in such a small amount and we do not digest the chemicals. Regardless, any artificial sweeteners theoretically should have the same effect on disrupting our metabolism and appetite regulation (see above).

 

Sources: (I chose to list sources that give overviews of the research as reading the research itself can be daunting – however I encourage everyone to look at the sources for themselves and you can find the exact journal article citations through these links)

(1) http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080210183902.htm

(2) http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1711763,00.html

(3) (http://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/12/business/yourmoney/12sweet.html?pagewanted=3&_r=2)

Tags: artificial sweeteners, diet soda, weight loss