Artificial sweeteners have been around more than 100 years, starting with the discovery of saccharine back in 1879. The age of artificial coincided with women joining the workforce in earnest, and was driven by the need for convenience.
Today's frozen foods are amazingly versatile -- so much tastier than the icy versions of yore. What hasn't changed is our desire for something sweet and there are many options for those who want to indulge without damaging their diet, including five no-calorie sweeteners approved by the Food and Drug Administration, which regulates them as food additives: saccharin (Sweet 'N Low), aspartame (NutraSweet), acesulfame potassium (or acesulfame K), sucralose (Splenda), and most recently neotame.
Recently, an old controversy reappeared on our eDiets Nutrition Support board. A member posted a concern about aspartame. She'd read that the Center for Science in the Public Interest recommended that based on a new study the FDA retest aspartame for safety.
I decided to do some research, and checked with the National Cancer Institute: Their online page about artificial sweeteners reports:
• Artificial sweeteners are regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
• There is no evidence that the regulated artificial sweeteners on the market in the United States are related to cancer risk in humans.
• As new sweetening products come on the market, the FDA continues to investigate any possible short- or long-term health risks that these products might create.
The Calorie Control Council, an international non-profit association representing the low-calorie and reduced-fat food and beverage industry reports, "The currently approved low-calorie sweeteners have been very thoroughly studied. The way aspartame is metabolized should provide confidence in its safety. Aspartame is broken down into two amino acids and a small amount of methanol -- all of which are already found in the diet."
The only people who should not consume foods sweetened with aspartame are those with a very rare (1 in 15,000) inherited disease called phenylketonuria.
Robert Earl is a registered dietitian and Senior Director for Nutrition Policy for the Food Products Association. He said that the study referenced by the CSPI is of questionable design, and was not subjected to peer-review or published in a peer-reviewed journal.
Further, it is only one study from a vast body of peer-reviewed scientific evaluations of aspartame. "Using artificial sweeteners is a matter of choice, not safety. Aspartame is one of the most extensively studied non-nutritive sweeteners worldwide. Not only has it been approved as a safe food by the FDA in the United States, but also by government and scientific review bodies worldwide, including the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA)."
The American Dietetic Association's position paper on artificial sweeteners describes the process that the FDA uses to determine the safety of the sweetener before approving it for general use. The testing "establishes a safety limit of food additives or conditions of use that are expressed as the Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI) -- the estimated amount (usually milligrams) per kilogram of body weight that a person can safely consume on average every day over a lifetime without risk."
The paper says that the ADI is very conservative, about 100 times less than the maximum level at which no observed effect occurs in animal (or very occasionally human) studies. The ADA cites a recent evaluation of calorie-free sweeteners worldwide, and found that intake is "well below acceptable levels."
Artificial sweeteners have helped me maintain my weight. When I went away to college at 18, like so many other students who have suddenly gained their freedom to stay up late and eat what I liked, I also gained something unwanted -- namely, the "freshman 15," which grew into the "junior 25."
When I graduated from college, my excess weight was still there, but now it had grown to more than 30 pounds overweight. At 26, I was finally ready to make a change. I started exercising regularly, and stopped eating late at night. I watched my portions, and stuck with lean protein, lots of veggies, including starchy veggies, fresh fruit and water. I had high-fiber cereal for breakfast with skim milk and fruit (the best habit -- known to weight maintainers).
I began to lose the weight, and I think one of the reasons I was able to stick with it was because I scheduled daily treats: a diet soda in the afternoon and a sugar-free gelatin or sugar-free, fat-free hot cocoa in the evening.
My daily sweet treats helped me feel satisfied and never deprived. Over the years I've stuck with a balanced diet, I stay active, and still enjoy my sweet treat every day. Occasionally, I buy some low-fat or nonfat ice cream, that's artificially sweetened, either with Splenda or NutraSweet, and enjoy the cool, sweet taste without the excess fat and calories of the regular versions.
Oh -- and every once and a while, I have the real thing, usually when I go to a party or to a special restaurant. If I order dessert, most likely I'll share it. When your usual diet is healthy and balanced, and has the right amount of calories and nutrition for your needs, you don't have "to diet."
Some health experts however, have posed the theory that artificially sweetened foods promote the desire for the real thing. A 2004 study published in the International Journal of Obesity showed that rats fed artificially-sweetened foods tended to overeat foods containing real sweeteners, causing them to gain weight.
The scientists theorized that humans who drink diet soft drinks and eat artificially sweetened foods on a regular basis are more likely to overeat the real thing -- as in sweet treats like desserts and ice cream.
David Katz, MD, author of The Way to Eat and Associate Professor of Public Health and Director of the Prevention Research Center at Yale University School of Medicine, advocates staying away from artificial sweeteners -- not for safety reasons, but because "intense artificial sweeteners have the propensity to propagate a sweet tooth.¨ Dr. Katz thinks that we should aspire toward healthy, wholesome food choices, not foods sweetened artificially.
I agree that some people go way over the line and consume too many artificially sweetened foods. Remember, just because it's labeled sugar-free doesn't make it calorie-free. Read the food labels and be aware of how many calories there are per serving. Some sugar-free (and fat-free, for that matter) varieties have the same, or even more calories than the original.
Everything shouldn't be sweet, or salty, for that matter. Many processed foods are loaded with "hidden ingredients" like salt, high-fructose corn syrup and other flavor enhancers. Some researchers link over consumption to dulled taste buds. I've spoken to many members who say that they don't "like" water. They expect all beverages to be sweet, and find water unappealing. They eat more processed foods to get the taste they want, and "natural foods" aren't satisfying.
Make your sweet treat an occasional treat. If you don't want to use artificial sweeteners, a little sugar or honey won't harm you -- as long as you brush your teeth after you eat.
