A recent warning by the World Health Organization (WHO) against artificial sweeteners has come as a big blow to diabetics and weight watchers, and has set the proverbial cat amongst the ‘pigeons’ in the health care sector.
Artificial sweeteners had come as a solace a few decades back for those who were overweight or had diabetes. They had stepped in to provide much sought-after respite for the sweet-toothed when they were denied sugar.
They were ushered into our foods and on to our dining tables due to steeply mounting health concerns about the role of refined sugar and its increasing usage in causing obesity, type 2 diabetes, fatty liver and heart disease, and were easily accepted as “harmless” substitutes.
The new band of “artificial sweeteners” included aspartame, saccharin, Acesulfame K, Sorbitol, Sucralose, Xylitol and Stevia.
Some of them such as aspartame, saccharin and stevia indeed have little or no calories and are 100 to 400 times sweeter than regular sugar, making them attractive alternatives for calorie-cutters.
They are now gone much beyond the coffee cup and permeated into a large range of foods: cola drinks (especially the “zero” calorie or “low” sugar or “diet” varieties), to pastries, sweets, juices and packaged products, that we consume regularly!
What is emerging however is the paradox, linking artificial sweeteners with weight gain and metabolic syndrome (diabetes, heart disease, obesity) the very reasons for which they had been introduced. Further, concern has been raised linking some of them with cancer, especially of the bladder.
One of them, cyclamate, has been banned in the USA.
The possible side effects of artificial sweeteners include digestive disorders, hormonal imbalance, mood swings, increased blood sugar, weight gain, fatty liver, high blood pressure and increased risk of cancer.
Disruption and alteration of the normal microbial gut flora is suspected to be one of the main ways by which they could be causing harm.
With the recent caution alert issued by the WHO, use of sweeteners is shifting towards the more natural ones such as date sugar, honey, fruit puree, coconut sugar, agave, and jaggery. They are rich in calories though!
