{"id":673,"date":"2022-01-26T15:32:45","date_gmt":"2022-01-26T15:32:45","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2023-01-10T13:03:16","modified_gmt":"2023-01-10T13:03:16","slug":"sugar-substitutes-are-they-any-good-for-you","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/magazine.circledna.com\/sugar-substitutes-are-they-any-good-for-you\/","title":{"rendered":"Sugar Substitutes: Are They Any Good For You?"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s human nature to crave sugar, and that\u2019s why sugar substitutes exist: to appeal to a massive market of people who want to curb their sugar craving without gaining an unhealthy amount of weight.<\/p>\n

Have you ever been tempted to go into a bakery on your way home for a cookie (or two)? Or absent-mindedly taken a chocolate bar off the shelf while you\u2019re in line waiting to pay for your groceries? Do you instinctively reach for the largest cup there is when you fill up your soft drink?<\/p>\n

Bakeries and grocery stores organize their displays the way they do for a good reason: they know that if it\u2019s on display, cheap and easy to reach, chances are the customer is going to buy it, even if they weren\u2019t planning on it. They might not even be hungry.<\/p>\n

You don\u2019t need to be hungry to crave sugar<\/a>. That\u2019s what makes it unique. Back when we dwelled in caves, sugar was hard to come by, so our bodies became biologically engineered to seek it out and when we found it, we consumed as much of it as we could. Little has changed in the present day.<\/p>\n

The first artificial sweetener was created in 1879, and ever since, scientists have devoted countless resources to the development of healthier alternatives to sugar<\/a>. The question is, are sugar substitutes actually good for you?<\/p>\n

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What Does Sugar Do To Your Body?<\/h2>\n

By now, most of us know that sugar doesn\u2019t do much good for us. Health and wellness coach Kim Abbage Hart <\/a>explains, \u201cSugar, while many love it, can have a negative impact on your overall health. Sugar, when consumed in large or excess quantities, can cause an insulin spike in your blood sugar levels. This effect can lead to numerous effects on your health such as higher blood pressure, inflammation in the body, weight gain [and] can lead to diabetes or other chronic diseases.\u201d<\/p>\n

Foods that contain refined sugars are \u2018calorie-dense\u2019 meaning they pack a lot of calories into a small amount of food. \u201cSugar is metabolized extremely quickly in your body thus spiking your insulin levels when consumed,\u201d says Kim. \u201cWhen consumed you get what we call a \u201csugar rush\u201d or energy burst because it enters the body relatively quickly and then once it wears off that is the dreaded \u201csugar crash\u201d that most people experience. When consuming sugar, your liver and muscles turn the glucose and store it as glycogen for energy. Sugar turns into fat due to the excess storage of glycogen. If you consume more sugar than your body is able to store, then the excess is stored as fatty deposits in the liver, thus causing weight gain.\u201d<\/p>\n

Some of us have a genetic predisposition to crave sugar more than others. It can be in your DNA to have a stronger sweet tooth. You can find out more about your genetic food preferences with a DNA test<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Advent of Sugar Substitutes and Artificial Sweeteners<\/h2>\n

After the accidental creation of the world\u2019s first artificial sweetener \u2013 saccharin \u2013 the developed world went wild for this \u2018miracle product\u2019. Saccharin required no land for growing sugar cane, didn\u2019t need to be refined and was a low-calorie, tooth-saving alternative to table sugar -sucrose- which had to be rationed during the first world war.<\/p>\n

From there, throughout the 20th century, we saw the invention of cyclamate, aspartame and sucralose, all man-made alternatives to sugar that promised to deliver the taste of sugar but without the risk to your health. In fact, many artificial sweeteners are much sweeter than sugar, so you don\u2019t need to use much to get that satisfyingly sweet taste. FDA approval was shakey at first, with cyclamate eventually being pulled from the shelves after researchers discovered links between the product and bladder cancer in lab rats. However, there has been little empirical evidence <\/a>of health concerns linked to artificial sweeteners in humans, and many people still enjoy using them today. They are considered by the FDA to be a relatively safe option for people looking to reduce their caloric intake, and for people who have diabetes. Some popular brands include Sweet N\u2019 Low (made with saccharin), Splenda (made with sucralose) and Equal and Nutrasweet, both made with aspartame. The truth seems to be that not much research has been found to argue that sugar substitutes are bad for us.<\/p>\n

Natural Sweeteners<\/h2>\n

Natural sweeteners are sweet foods or extracts from foods that are found in nature. Because they are marketed with the word \u2018natural\u2019, many people assume they are better for you. However, many natural sweeteners undergo processing that strips them of much of the nutritional compounds they contained, so it\u2019s important to research the brands more than the product itself. A few examples of natural sweeteners include<\/p>\n