My diabetic husband was wondering this recently. He, like most diabetics, have been recommended to have artificial sweeteners to satisfy the sweet tooth while not harming blood sugar levels.
The Mayo Clinic likes most of the main substitutes including saccharin, aspartame, acesulfame potassium, sucralose and stevia. They do caution that sugar alcohols such as mannitol, sorbitol and xylitol can increase your blood sugar level. Just make sure you do not consume more of an unhealthy type of food simply because it’s sugar free.
A 2014 study from the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, however, contradicts this belief that artificial sweeteners are a good choice for the diabetic.
As reported by National Geographic, artificial sweeteners alter the gut bacteria in ways that can cause glucose intolerance.
This 2014 study involved using mice drinking one of four drinks – water or water sweetened with either saccharin, sucralose or aspartame. All the mice drinking sweetened water developed glucose intolerance within 11 weeks.
Next, they used antibiotics to wipe out intestinal bacteria and found that blood sugar returned quickly to normal.
Finally, they used the glucose-intolerant mice to transfer the unhealthy gut bugs to the healthy mice. These fresh mice developed glucose intolerance within 6 days! Additionally, the gut bacteria showed lots of the bacteria used for digesting carbohydrates. (My personal analysis tends to feel that this would lead to craving for carbohydrates to feed that bacteria!)
But we’re not done yet.
Following the study on mice, there was a subsequent study on over 300 nondiabetic humans where again, they found a connection between artificial sweeteners, obesity and elevated blood sugar – as well as altered gut bacteria!
Finally, the team grabbed a small group of adults who didn’t use artificial sweeteners and gave them the FDA’s recommended allowance (120mg daily) of saccharin for one-week. They were subjected to very frequent blood sugar tests and daily glucose tolerance tests.
More than half of the individuals had significantly poorer glycemic responses by the end of the week.
More studies are required to confirm the cause-effect relationship between obesity, artificial sweeteners and glucose intolerance, but this study alone should raise greater awareness of the potential problems of using artificial sweeteners.
Doctors Hope Ricciotti, MD and Hye-Chun Hur, MD at Harvard say:
Two recent studies have found that beverages containing sucralose (Splenda) and acesulfame potassium (Sunett, Sweet One) increased insulin levels, while drinking water didn't. Neither study lasted long enough to determine whether drinking artificially sweetened beverages would eventually result in weight gain or insulin resistance. But the results suggest that artificial sweeteners may potentially have some of the same negative effects on insulin and weight as sugar does. in this “ask the doctor” article
They suggest using sweeteners (artificial or natural) sparingly and preferentially use a piece of fruit to satisfy the sweet tooth when it emerges.
(Image from Pxhere)
Critics
One very loud supporter of artificial sweeteners and critic of studies like the above one include Josh Bloom. In this article, he mentions a debunked and retracted (2012) study as well as a 1995-6 study with sucralose in the UK – a number of years before it was approved there. The participants were involved over 12 weeks and were tested for fasting glucose, insulin levels and other things on a weekly basis. No real difference was measured between the sucralose or placebo groups.
My main argument here is that there appears to have been a fairly low level of control on the participants. Sure, they were on sucralose, but what was the rest of their diet doing at the same time? Were they “behaving” better? Plus, their testing was only weekly, not the very frequent and daily testing of the 2014 study.
What is his argument against the 2014 study?
To be sure, the jury is still out on this one. Although doctors continue to recommend artificial sweeteners to many patients, especially diabetics, it’s not entirely clear whether or not this is a good recommendation.
I have yet to see any studies criticizing the natural, low-carb sweeteners such as stevia, so that may still be a good low-carb solution, but it’s probably better yet to work on reducing one’s personal need for the sweet taste to the point where a little bit of honey, molasses or maple syrup isn’t too harmful.
Something else which hasn’t made any waves, despite it being a huge part of the 2014 mice study… the way they cleaned out the gut bacteria in the mice and reset their glucose intolerance – antibiotics. I have to wonder whether a regime of encapsulated cinnamon, garlic and other known natural antibiotics might help cure someone of the initial glucose intolerance, after which they might be able to have small amounts of natural sugars without too many issues…
More studies to be done, for sure!
Lori Aberle Hopkins – photographer at Viking Visual, author, student-of-the-world.
Follow, upvote and resteem me here and on Facebook
Check out my work at: RedBubble, ImageKind, and CafePress.
Camera has changed from time to time, the photographer has not. :-)
Unless otherwise stated, all photos are original to me and © 2008-2018.
