Calorie-free sweeteners probably aren't dangerous, but they may not help you lose weight either.

1. Myths and Facts About Sugar
Substitutes
 By Dr. Sanjay Gupta
Calorie-free sweeteners probably aren't
dangerous, but they may not help you lose
weight either.
Research suggests people are cutting back on their
sugar intake, but it’s still having a serious health
impact worldwide. According to the American Heart
Association, tens of thousands of global deaths
each year from heart disease, cancer, and type 2
diabetes may be linked to sugary drinks.
For many people, artificial sweeteners offer a
calorie-free way to satisfy sweet-tooth cravings.
But do these sugar substitutes pose health risks,
and how do they affect the way we taste and
consume food?
“We still don’t fully understand the long-term
effects of artificial sweeteners,” said Alexandra
Kaplan Corwin, a registered dietician in the division
of pediatric endocrinology and diabetes at The
Children’s Hospital at Montefiore Medical Center in
New York City. “Though the [U.S. Food and Drug
Administration] has said they’re safe and the
National Cancer Institute says they don’t cause
cancer, we still don’t really know if there are long-
term health consequences.”

2. In the 1970s, studies linked the sugar-substitute
saccharine to urinary bladder cancer in lab rats. In
response, Congress required that foods containing
saccharine have a warning label. Follow-up studies
found no cancer-risk in humans, and the National
Institutes of Health removed saccharin from a list
of suspected carcinogens in 2000.
The safety of another sugar substitute came into
question after a study suggested an increase in
brain tumors in the U.S. might be related to the
use of aspartame. But the National Cancer
Institute traced the increased tumor rates back to
the 1970s, years before the substitute was on the
market. Subsequent research found no connection
between aspartame and cancer in humans.
This month, the European Food Safety Authority
concluded that aspartame is safe at levels
contained in diet soda.
“None of these studies have been replicated in
humans with the same results,” said Kristi King, a
clinical dietician at Texas Children’s Hospital in
Houston. “It seems like the amount of sweeteners
you’d have to consume on a daily basis over your
lifetime would have to be enormous to have any
kind of detrimental side effect.”
While there’s no evidence these sugar substitutes
are dangerous, a recent study suggests they don’t
guarantee weight loss. Researchers from the Yale
University School of Medicine found that eating
foods with artificial sweeteners when we’re hungry

3. or tired increases the likelihood of choosing higher-
calorie foods later on.
Brain scans of mice found that the brain signal that
regulates levels of dopamine, a neurotransmitter
associated with the brain’s reward center, is only
triggered when regular sugar is broken down.
“The results suggest that a ‘happy medium’ could
be a solution; combining sweeteners with minimal
amounts of sugar so that energy metabolism
doesn't drop, while caloric intake is kept to a
minimum,” according to Yale professor and study
lead Ivan de Araujo.
“Artificial sweeteners aren’t necessarily a magic
bullet for weight loss,” said Corwin. “They don’t
contain calories, but you have to make sure you’re
not letting yourself think you can eat more
because you had a diet soda instead of a regular
one.”
Sugar substitutes are much sweeter than sugar,
which can have an adverse effect on how we
choose what foods to eat. “If you’re having a lot of
artificial sweeteners, they can increase your
preference for them and make more nutritious
foods less tasty and appealing,” said Corwin.
Here’s how five FDA-approved artificial sweeteners
measure up on the “sweetness scale,” according to
the Sugar Association:
 Acesulfame K, or ace K, is 200 times sweeter
than sugar.

4.  Aspartame (marketed as Equal and
NutraSweet) is 200 times sweeter than sugar.
 Neotame is about 40 times sweeter than
aspartame, or 8,000 times sweeter than
sugar.
 Saccharine (commonly sold as Sweet ’N Low)
can be between 200 and 700 times sweeter
than sugar.
 Sucralose (sold as Splenda) is 600 times
sweeter than sugar.
For people trying to lose weight or manage
conditions like heart disease and diabetes, the
American Heart Association and the American
Diabetes Association support the moderate use of
artificial sweeteners. Reducing sugar in your diet is
important, but “sugar free” isn’t the same as
healthy.
Here are some healthy tips on consuming sugar
and sugar substitutes:
 If you’re looking to avoid both sugary and
artificially sweetened drinks, try water or
seltzer flavored with fruit slices or mint leaves.
 Among sugar substitutes, Corwin prefers the
natural sweetener stevia, which is derived
from a plant. Refined stevia extract is
“generally regarded as safe,” but the FDA
hasn’t approved it in whole-leaf or crude form

5. because of concerns about possible side
effects.
 When buying juice drinks for your kids, look
for the phrase “100 percent juice.” Those
juices will contain the vitamins and minerals
found in the fruit, said King. Avoid products
that are “fruit flavored.”
 The AHA recommends fresh fruit or canned
fruits packed in water or natural juice over
fruit canned in syrup. Instead of adding sugar
to oatmeal or cereal, use fresh or dried fruit.
 Avoid nutrient-poor, processed foods and
beverages with added sugar, said King.
Naturally occurring sugars found in fruit and
milk, in moderation, can still be part of a
healthy diet.
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