Artificial sugars, beneficial?

Artificial Sugars

Before delving into the role that aspartame and other sweeteners play in our health, let’s take a brief look at the evolution of our sweet tastes.

Our search for sweet foods dates back to Paleolithic hunters as a sweet taste allowed hunters to distinguish between sweet food sources and poisonous ones with high toxin levels. Therefore, honey represented a source of energy.

It is believed that honey was the only available source of sweetener for thousands of years. Some historians suggest that this consumption and the concentration of glucose may have played an important role in the development of the human race, due to the functions of glucose in brain development.

The Evolution of Natural Sweeteners

After sweet honey plants in China came maple syrup through the Indigenous peoples of America, sugar derivatives (like molasses), palm juice sugar (panela), and finally, white table sugar, which has been an important part of our diet for over 300 years.

Recently, we have seen the commercial exploitation of stevia, which we will cover later.

How and When Was Aspartame Invented?

Aspartame, known by its code E-951 in Europe (the main brands, besides those from supermarkets, are Canderel and Nutrasweet), is not only used to sweeten our coffee or tea but is also used in the production of hundreds of products that you can find in your regular supermarket.

It was accidentally invented in the 1960s in the USA while testing an anti-ulcer medication – it turned out that the intense sweetness of aspartame was up to 200 times sweeter than sugar itself.

However, aspartame has been banned and reinstated several times by the FDA (Food and Drug Administration), making aspartame a very controversial substance.

It seems that modern society has made it its mission to achieve low-calorie foods without sacrificing sweet flavors. It is estimated that each person in Spain consumes 35g of sugar and artificial sugars daily.

What Are the Different Types of Sweeteners?

Natural – honey, maple syrup, panela, stevia (contains no calories or carbohydrates – recommended for diabetics), coconut sugar, and cane molasses. Artificial – three main types: saccharin, sucralose, and aspartame – many brands are from supermarkets themselves, except for some like Natreen, Canderel, and Nutrasweet.

What Are the Health Risks Associated with Aspartame?

Today, it is believed that there are over 90 diseases related to aspartame consumption. The presence of three highly toxic chemicals in aspartame (methanol, phenylalanine, and aspartic acid) means you should be aware of the various risks that aspartame poses to your health.

Artificial sweeteners like aspartame alter gut microbiota, leading to glucose intolerance, cause a pronounced decline in kidney function, and are also associated with the development of leukemia.

By altering antioxidant properties and spreading reduced amounts of methanol in our bodies, aspartame can disrupt our immune system, cause brain damage, long-term tumors, and spina bifida.

Moreover, artificial sweeteners increase blood sugar levels and impair insulin resistance, all of which pose a greater risk of obesity, cancer, and type 2 diabetes.

Furthermore, aspartame is addictive as it alters dopamine absorption in the brain; thus, quitting the substance could be compared to the process of overcoming addiction. (By affecting dopamine, it can also cause Parkinson’s disease or similar diseases.)

What Are the Best Alternatives to Artificial Sweeteners?

First of all, sugar (white) IS NOT a healthy alternative (unless you consume a few teaspoons a day) – the health risks posed by sugar go far beyond rotten teeth.

Choosing between aspartame and sugar in significant amounts is like choosing to be hit in the head by a fronton ball or a baseball! But you can put sweeteners aside – there are several options to maintain a healthy diet without sacrificing sweet flavors:

STEVIA Is a great alternative as it contains no calories or carbohydrates and is much sweeter than sugar, meaning your taste buds will quickly restore.

Stevia is a very useful option for people dealing with diabetes because it does not threaten blood sugar levels. Make sure to buy unprocessed stevia.

RAW HONEY It may contain more fructose than other alternatives, but it is offset by its antioxidant properties – very useful for defending the body against cancer.

Raw honey comes with a myriad of benefits, as the nutrients, enzymes, and vitamins present can help regulate blood sugar and blood pressure levels, as well as relieve allergies and boost our immune system.

COCONUT SUGAR If you buy it in its organic form (Thai origin, for example), it is more like coconut candy – sweet, delicious, and like nougat! The coconut sugar has a low glycemic value (35), so you won’t have problems with blood sugar levels.

SUGAR ALCOHOLS (XYLITOL) It sounds ominous, but our metabolism generates xylitol in small amounts. This substance contains half the calories of white sugar and is a natural carbohydrate, so its impact on blood sugar levels is very limited. Yes.

Although all these natural sweeteners are considerably more beneficial than aspartame, they should be used in moderation – so your metabolism and cravings can fully restore. Finally, natural sugars from fruits, such as berries, grapefruit, or kiwi, also help keep the gut and immune system healthy.

Sources and references: Taylor and Francis Online – honey consumption in human evolution US National Library of Medicine – artificial sweeteners and glucose intolerance American Society of Nephrology – artificial sweeteners and kidney decline US National Library of Medicine – artificial sweeteners linked to leukemia US National Library of Medicine – artificial sweeteners alter antioxidant properties US National Library of Medicine – aspartame link to brain tumors Natural News – aspartame linked to spina bifida CBC News – artificial sweeteners linked to obesity and type 2 diabetes