The TRUTH About Artificial Sweeteners

to Ramondo, Just so you know, there is no aspartame in splenda.

Hey, Joel,
To all you up there who are sooo against artificial sweeteners, I say: GUNK!
I am 60 (and a half) years old, have been a Type 1 Insulin Dependent Diabetic for 48 years and have used all different types of artificial sweeteners during that span of time with no type of after effect.
In high school I was a 3-4 sport athlete, wrestled five (5) years collegiately, and continue to train like and athlete.
To Don, I have none (not a ONE) of the effects you list in your response.
I drink soft drinks (Diet Mt. Dew and Diet Pepsi my favorite) and use Splenda or generic blend of Splenda for all my sweetening.
I remember using some nasty after taste stuff in my youth (Sweet 10-Yuck) but that was what was “prescribed.”
You would think I would serve as proof of what a bunch of crap the noise is against artificial sweeteners.
Most people guess me in my mid-late thirties and are absolutely astounded when I tell them my real age.
All my athletes (mostly wrestlers) tell me they want to look like me when they’re 60!
There are all kinds of excuses for why people feel like or look like they do and I am not one to add to the “Pussification of America!” And then start to find new excuses with artificial sweeteners, etc. Like they don’t already have enough excuses for not leading the kind of quality life they’re able.
I see it in every facet of my everyday life in schools, church, doctor’s office, etc. where overweight/obese people are complaining about how terrible they feel, how they’ve got Type 2 Diabetes, how their joints hurt, etc. Wah, Wah, Wah.
Thank you, Joel for challenging this asinine idea and encouraging people to get moving, INTENSELY, and eating better and quit blaming everyone else for how poorly they live.

I would never use an artificial sweetener. Ill just take the few extra calories with sugar, I work out anyway. Or hey; I don’t even need my food sweet. I just don’t think its worth it to put potentially harmful chemicals in my body if I don’t have to

I would be very interested to know your opinion on artificial sweeteners. It is very discouraging to try eating healthier foods and change life habits, but not have reasonable alternatives when my nasty sweet tooth rears it’s ugly head. Everything I “hear” is negative regarding the use of artificial sweeteners, and I do believe that anything in excess is not healthy, but will a diet soda once in a while really be that detrimental to me?

Not drinking diet pop has helped me lose weight and keep it off.

I could not use artificial sweetners. It tricks the body into thinking sugar is there when it isn’t. So the body floods with insulin and there is no glucose to use up so with too much insulin I would get the shakes, dizziness, headaches blurred vision. All pretty scary! Same thing happeded to my father. But stopping the artificial sweeteners and using stevia or agave nector I (nor he) no longer have this problem. P.S. Haven’t used processed white sugar in over 10 years!
My father lived to be 92 and was on no meds typical of most elderly people! I’m 56 and have great health with no physical ailments.

Ahhh, yet another interesting post – I would love to hear what you have to share with us on this subject.

I try my best to steer away from the sweet things, however I do drink diet coke and other diet fizzy drinks a few times a week. And yes – occasionally in the double espressos too!

All the rumor’s and bad press the artificial sweetener’s get does bring paranoia upon me to say the least.

Please post the article!

I do not eat sugar, and I have stopped drinking diet drinks because of aspartame.
I have started using stevia, however some of the cooking recipes have suggested using splenda. Any more info would be nice.

IF I need a sweetner in something, I use either honey or my personal favourite, agave nectar. Even diabetics can use agave nectar. You only have to use half (or less) volume wise as opposed to sugar.

I don’t care if the research says artificial sweeners are safe. I don’t need any research to know that WHENEVER I USE ASPARTAME I HAVE DIZZY SPELLS and the more I drink and over a longer period of time I drink or eat anything containing the stuff the dizziness progressively gets worse. It gets so bad that I cannot function at all anymore. So bad that I had to go to the hospital with it and they could not find the cause of it. They ran all kinds of tests including cat scans, X Rays, blood tests, etc. I went to chiropractors, physical therapist, etc.
Then one day I said I am going to stop consuming the aspartame containing products to see if there could be a link between aspartame and the dizziness considering it has been stated that it is a NEURO TOXIN! It took a little over 2 months to finally get that stuff out of my system enough to where te dizzyness finally went away. A few months later just to see if that really was the cause I started consuming aspartame containing products again as an experiment and sure enough the dizziness started to return. This time I stopped before it got so bad that I could not function.
As far as Splenda it is made up of nothing but sugar and bleach! If you want to drink bleach then go right ahead but I am not that stupid.
The pink stuff I do use occassionally only if I am eating out and if I forgot to bring my Stevia or Truvia which is a more natural and harmless sweetener but I hear the pink stuff is bad for the liver and causes destruction of beta cells in the pancreas thereby exaserbating and contributing to diabetes.
I don’t like taking chances if I don’t have to. There are already too many toxins in all of our foods to deliberatly take a chance on poisoning oneself with questionable artificial sweeteners especially since we do have a viable alternative such as Stevia.
Besides any research that says artificial sweeteners are safe has an agenda and has something to gain by reporting them as safe. The research is put out by the companies that make the sell the sweeteners or by labs being paid by the artificial sweetener producing companies. What possible motive would there be for anyone to Dis these sweeteners? What agenda do they have? What do they have to gain? I know the artificial sweetener producing companies have a lot of money to gain by falsefying their bogus research in favor of these artificial sweeteners.

I usually try to drink only splenda or Stevia. If there’s nothing else, I’m ok using aspartame.

I’d like to hear more about this topic.

Not into sweeteners but am interested in learning the info…

I drink diet soda, usually Dr Pepper, usually 1 during the daytime, mostly because it settles my stomach. I never use diet sweetners in coffee, but sometimes a little sugar. Hal

I have come off all sugar and artificially sweetened products. I used to have a real sweet tooth, but for the past few years, I just have not liked (i.e., enjoyed) sugary tasting foods anymore. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, I guess.;-))

HOWEVER, there is — as to any rule — one big exception. Like so many others here: I love my DIET COKE. Having heard of and read some of the horror findings in the past few years, I have constantly tried to eliminate it as well, but I have not succeeded. I drink about 5 small bottles a week. Sometimes just because I feel like it (and I do like the taste) — although I have definitely succeeded in reducing those instances. There are times though where I NEED a diet coke: a) oncoming migraine (I do not drink any coffee so that caffeine boost helps me along with the pain killers) and b) when I have pizza (on my cheat days) because it fits perfectly for me taste-wise and I can easily digest my delicious pizza with it. Maybe the acid in the diet cokes helps to digest the melted cheese… Well, works for me.:-)

However, I have to admit that particularly the findings I have come across according to which aspartame damages the brain and neural function and supposedly causes brain (and whatever other) cancer really scare me. And of course if I could come off the diet coke and thus eliminate the last artificial source in my diet, it would surely be better.

I am eager to hear what research you have come across and if aspartame is not as damaging as indicated by SOME studies, then great.

I definitly agree with what some people have mentioned here: where does the research come from? Who is funding it? If you could include that in tomorrow’s article as well — both for your findings as well as previous research that found articifial sweeteners are bad, that would be great. I am sure we would appreciate that.

Thanks in advance.

I don’t drink any diet sodas ( I haven’t had any for a good amount of time!) but I use coffee creamer in my coffee without adding any sugar packets. Which I know is a no no but I haven’t purchased any Stevia sweetner yet.

Great topic Joel. Looking forward to part 2.

There seems to be a lot of claims of negative side effects with consumption of artificial sweeteners. Claims and anecdotal stories is not what science is based on. Facts, research and observational studies make up real science. If a claim of “mental retardation” in pregnant woman (not sure if they mean the mother or the fetus or both) is to be considered, who did the study? How many subjects? How long was the study? How much was consumed, or administered? Was this study on cells, embryos, rats, monkeys, pigs, humans? How was the study conducted? Who paid for the study? Was it published and peer reviewed? Have the results been repeated by others? Without citing the study the claim is just hearsay not fact. The internet is full of information not all of it true.

Dear Joel

I have been following you and your news letters and have so much respect for your knowledge and expertise, BUT I do not agree one little bit with the use of artificial chemical sweeteners art all, I would rather use the plain ole natural brown sugar, which I don’t in any case!!

But, at the end it all comes down to choice!!

All the best

Wahb

Your blog today about the use of artificial sweeteners is not only rather disappointing and controversial , but also totally unprofessional in my opinion. I am surprised you would post something like this to your blog just to get a few comments from your followers. You’ve really let us all down on this one, Joel. Shame on you! All artificial sweeteners (and anything else that’s an artificial food additive) should be banned in the United States. If it’s not something found in nature, that doesn’t need any form of processing, then don’t consume it. End of story!

Well I’ve heard saccharine causes cancer and aspartame causes neurotoxicity. So it’s a choice between cancer and brain damage. I’ve heard mixed reviews on Splenda.
I have stevia (brand name Truvia) but I don’t like the taste especially in coffee, so I mix a packet of each. I like my coffee sweet.
If you are covering sweeteners please check out Xylitol (not sure if that’s a brand name or not). It’s supposed to be a form of sugar that is good for you. I’m very interested in it.
Also I like fruit juice which I dilute with water. I actually learned to prefer it diluted. I like most juices but especially grapefruit, pomogranate and acai. These are all supposed to be so healthy but then I hear that juice is just concentrated sugar!
Also, Joel, you state that there is no research to discredit sweeteners, but is there any study that shows they actually help people to lose weight? I’ve heard they don’t.
I’m very interested in your report. Thanks.

Ok so I am a premed student and my aunt is a nurse, and the thing about artificial sweeteners is the quantity that you use it in. If you use it once in a while, then nothing is going to happen, in fact I use it when I diet. But If you drink 1-2 diet cokes a day for a prolonged period, then yes you are going to have the negative effects of it. Personally, I just use the all natural zero calorie sweeteners.

Hi Joel, I use splenda here in Australia But am confused with all the hype of “don’t use it” It will kill you, to “it’s ok to use it occassionally” Some help here with research would be great. Cheers

i use them, definately! i tried stevia but found the taste that unholy that i would rather any (possible) effects of the sweetener. and give me a coke zero anyday over normal coke. its true, all the bad stuff i have heard is just that, not actual research.

You have GOT to be kidding me. Are you seriously saying you find nothing wrong with the CHEMICAL (man-made) you are using?? REALLY!!! I read about this ever so often, and am actually reading Russell Blaylock’s book on neurotoxins (Neurotoxins – the taste the kills) (which includes aspartame). I absolutely hate that all these chemicals are being used in food products and consumed by people who either trust the FDA to take care of them and/or do not care to research what they are putting into their bodies. No you will not drop dead as you stated, but you are slowly damaging your body, including your brain sloooooowly. These are man-made. The body was not designed to process this stuff. You know this, Joel. Drink your coffee straight and let go of the “show me the proof” attitude. Your training is not being reflected in what I have just read above. No hard feelings, I enjoy reading what you have to say, but this has me irritated!!!

Is stevia better than the others?