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helwenWe all know those sugar-free sweeteners aren't all they're cracked up to be. But who knew they could possibly cause a person to gain weight?
From Prevention Magazine (July 2006):
The sugar-free business is booming: sales are up 24% since 1999, with sugarless gum and soda the two top sellers, according to data tracker Mintel. Americans spent an estimated $8.8 billion on low-sugar products last year, reports ACNielsen, and many of these were sweetened with additives such as sucralose (Splenda), aspartame (NutraSweet and Equal), or saccharin (Sweet'n Low).
Preliminary research isn't so sweet. It suggests that these products may actually ramp up your appetite, espeically if consumed as a beverage. A 2004 Purdue University study found that rats that drank liquids artificially sweetened with saccharin ate more food than those that had been fed sugar-sweetened liquids. Humans who chug sodas with these sweeteners may react by overeating, too: Your risk of being overweight rises 65% for every diet soda you down each day, according to a study presented in June 2005 at the American Diabetes Association meeting.
Use Them:
if you're a diabetic who can't use sugar hour honey. "Low-calorie sweeteners don't affect blood sugar, so they allow diabetics to get some sweetness into their diet without endangering their health," says Madelyn Fernstrom, PhD, director of the Weight Management Center at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. And if you like cakes and cookies, Splenda -- the additive that's best at retaining its sweetness at high temperatures -- makes it possible to create low-cal desserts. "I use a mix of sugar and Splenda when I bake -- I don't notice a difference at all," says Leigh-Anne Kent, 37, a financial analyst in Denver.
Lose Them:
if you have a sweet tooth. "(Dieters) turn to artifical sweeteners as a way to stem their sugar cravings, but they just make things worse," says Ann Kulze, MD, a physician in Charleston, SC. "They drink a Diet Coke and minutes later they're craving cookies. Once they cut out sugar substitutes, those yearnings drop."
Bottom Line:
Unless you are diabetic, you're better off dumping sugar rather than a sugar substitute into your coffee. Why? Artificial sweeteners may make you feel extra hungry and fool your body into thinking sweet foods have fewer calories, so you unconsciously munch on more of them, says Sharon Fowler, MPH, a faculty associate in the division of clinical epidemiology at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. So go ahead, have the real thing. Just have a little -- and enjoy it a lot.
Article by Hallie Levine, who writes about health and fitness for many national publications, including Newsweek and Glamour.
From Prevention Magazine (July 2006):
The sugar-free business is booming: sales are up 24% since 1999, with sugarless gum and soda the two top sellers, according to data tracker Mintel. Americans spent an estimated $8.8 billion on low-sugar products last year, reports ACNielsen, and many of these were sweetened with additives such as sucralose (Splenda), aspartame (NutraSweet and Equal), or saccharin (Sweet'n Low).
Preliminary research isn't so sweet. It suggests that these products may actually ramp up your appetite, espeically if consumed as a beverage. A 2004 Purdue University study found that rats that drank liquids artificially sweetened with saccharin ate more food than those that had been fed sugar-sweetened liquids. Humans who chug sodas with these sweeteners may react by overeating, too: Your risk of being overweight rises 65% for every diet soda you down each day, according to a study presented in June 2005 at the American Diabetes Association meeting.
Use Them:
if you're a diabetic who can't use sugar hour honey. "Low-calorie sweeteners don't affect blood sugar, so they allow diabetics to get some sweetness into their diet without endangering their health," says Madelyn Fernstrom, PhD, director of the Weight Management Center at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. And if you like cakes and cookies, Splenda -- the additive that's best at retaining its sweetness at high temperatures -- makes it possible to create low-cal desserts. "I use a mix of sugar and Splenda when I bake -- I don't notice a difference at all," says Leigh-Anne Kent, 37, a financial analyst in Denver.
Lose Them:
if you have a sweet tooth. "(Dieters) turn to artifical sweeteners as a way to stem their sugar cravings, but they just make things worse," says Ann Kulze, MD, a physician in Charleston, SC. "They drink a Diet Coke and minutes later they're craving cookies. Once they cut out sugar substitutes, those yearnings drop."
Bottom Line:
Unless you are diabetic, you're better off dumping sugar rather than a sugar substitute into your coffee. Why? Artificial sweeteners may make you feel extra hungry and fool your body into thinking sweet foods have fewer calories, so you unconsciously munch on more of them, says Sharon Fowler, MPH, a faculty associate in the division of clinical epidemiology at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. So go ahead, have the real thing. Just have a little -- and enjoy it a lot.
Article by Hallie Levine, who writes about health and fitness for many national publications, including Newsweek and Glamour.
