Is Anyone Here Still Using Artificial Sweeteners?

[tex]

If you are, please read this quote from a recently published research study, especially if you have diabetes, or a pre-diabetic condition:

Artificial sweeteners can potentially make blood sugar levels rise despite containing no calories, researchers found in human and mouse studies.

That's because saccharine and its counterparts appear to alter the bacteria residing in the intestines in ways that can impair some people's ability to process glucose, the researchers report in the Sept. 17 issue of Nature. That means rather than helping the current epidemics of obesity and type 2 diabetes in the United States, artificial sweeteners could potentially be contributing to the problem, according to the study.

The researchers found that mice fed artificial sweeteners developed higher blood sugar levels compared to mice drinking plain water or even water laced with sugar.

They further found that they could bring the mice's blood sugar levels back to normal by treating them with antibiotics. And, they could induce higher blood sugar levels in healthy mice never exposed to artificial sweeteners by transplanting gut bacteria from mice who had been fed saccharine.

Turning to a group of nearly 400 people, the researchers found that long-term users of artificial sweeteners were more likely to have higher fasting blood sugar levels. They were also more likely to have signs of impaired glucose processing, compared with people who don't normally use such sweeteners.

In a small follow-up experiment, the researchers tested blood sugar levels of seven people who don't normally consume artificial sweeteners. The researchers found that four of these people had higher blood sugar levels after consuming the U.S Food and Drug Administration's maximum recommended daily amount of saccharine for six days straight.

Artificial Sweeteners May Raise Blood Sugar Levels: Study

The red emphasis is mine, of course. This raises a question in my mind — since the brain runs on glucose, could this impairment of the ability of the body to properly process glucose result in possible long-term brain damage?

It's not nice to try to fool Mother Nature, and the artificial sweetener industry has been playing that game for way too long, IMO.

Tex

[Gabes-Apg]

I heard this story on the news last night.... The diet soft drink makers have said not to stop having artificial sweeteners until more comprehensive research can be done!!

I stopped having them when I joined this board and saw how many were reacting to them. It is stevia, coconut syrup, coconut sugar only in this household.

[maestraz]

I completely gave up aspartame, which bothered my gut and gave me headaches. I no longer drink diet soda--if I want bubbles, I drink seltzer. In my iced tea, I like Domino Light, which is sugar/stevia, 5 calories a packet.

BTW, Since giving up the diet soda, and most carbonated drinks, my stomach noise is greatly reduced.

[Whiplash]

I have used sucralose every day for over 4 years.

Artificial sweeteners can potentially make blood sugar levels rise despite containing no calories, researchers found in human and mouse studies.

Calories do not cause blood sugar to rise, carbohydrates do.

They further found that they could bring the mice's blood sugar levels back to normal by treating them with antibiotics.

I don't know about mice, but I do know as a diabetic, from personal experience that antibiotics raise my blood sugar to the moon, they definitely don't lower it.

In a small follow-up experiment, the researchers tested blood sugar levels of seven people who don't normally consume artificial sweeteners. The researchers found that four of these people had higher blood sugar levels after consuming the U.S Food and Drug Administration's maximum recommended daily amount of saccharine for six days straight.

We know that these 7 people did not consume only a few saccharine tablets per day for 6 days, and nothing else. They obviously each ate whatever they wanted -- the more carbs, the higher their blood sugar. IMO this research is flawed, as is most of the research I have looked at that has to do with diabetes and/or artificial sweeteners, although I do agree that aspartame should not be used by people who have MC.

[tex]

Calories do not cause blood sugar to rise, carbohydrates do.

??? The article never said or implied anything contrary to that, so I assume that you are just adding details that we already know to the authors' statement.

I don't know about mice, but I do know as a diabetic, from personal experience that antibiotics raise my blood sugar to the moon, they definitely don't lower it.

That's a well-documented issue with certain antibiotics when used by diabetics. Of course the mice probably didn't have diabetes, so they wouldn't be vulnerable to diabetic issues regarding the use of antibiotics.

http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/ ... key=172680

We know that these 7 people did not consume only a few saccharine tablets per day for 6 days, and nothing else. They obviously each ate whatever they wanted -- the more carbs, the higher their blood sugar. IMO this research is flawed, as is most of the research I have looked at that has to do with diabetes and/or artificial sweeteners, although I do agree that aspartame should not be used by people who have MC.

You seem to be grasping at straws to defend the use of artificial sweeteners. Unless the subjects in that study intentionally consumed considerably more carbs during the study than they normally would, the data are valid. Even if they consumed more carbs than they normally would, the data may still be valid, because it is well documented that artificial sweeteners promote increased consumption of carbs.

http://www.fitday.com/fitness-articles/ ... -gain.html

Using your own claim (that the research may be flawed), that argument can be used for all of the cherry-picked research that was originally submitted by the manufacturers to the FDA in order to gain approval of artificial sweeteners. "Flawed" has been the best description of supporting research used to justify the use of artificial sweeteners ever since their use was first proposed.

Tex

[Whiplash]

I'm not trying to defend the use of artificial sweeteners, just looking for the truth. Not all research is reliable. A while back, research found that almonds lower blood sugar. But after reading how the research was done - one group of diabetics was fed only almonds, the other was fed only muffins. The result was the group who ate muffins had higher blood sugar than those who ate almonds. The logical conclusion is that muffins raise blood sugar higher than almonds do because they contain a whole lot more carbs. But instead, the researchers concluded from this test that almonds lower blood sugar. As a diabetic who eats almonds, I can definitely tell you that they don't. IMO, this is junk science, not reliable research, and there is a lot of junk science out there. When it comes to diabetes and sweeteners, I also don't have much confidence in research that is done on mice and rats.

I have read some reliable research that has tested certain sweeteners (all sweeteners are not the same) and proved they are bad for us, I will stay away from those sweeteners, but will also continue not to take any research for granted, but to look at it with an open mind, taking into consideration my own personal experience with diabetes and sucralose, since that is the only sweetener I use.

From my own personal experience - sucralose has not caused me to gain weight. I have been using it and eating low carb for over 4 years, and the result is I have lost 40 pounds without even trying to lose weight. (I do not attribute the weight loss to the sucralose, I contribute it to eating low carb.)

It has not caused my fasting blood sugar to be higher. My fasting is most often lower than it was 4 yrs. ago.

I strive, and usually succeed in keeping by blood sugar below 140 mg/dl (7.8 mmol/L) and I do that by testing 1 and 2 hrs. after taking the first bite of food so I will know how the foods I am eating are affecting my blood sugar. I can definitely say that sucralose does not raise my blood sugar.

My overall blood sugar (A1c test results) has gone from 6.0 to 5.5 over the past 4 years, which further shows that sucralose has not caused me to have higher blood sugar readings.

Of course I can't speak for the experiences that anyone else has had with sucralose, just my own.

[DebE13]

I steer clear of artificial anything. My Dad has diabetes and I see the struggle between weight, BS levels and managing a diet with artificial ingredients. It's a difficult situation.

[Whiplash]

I agree that steering clear of anything artificial is the best way to go for all of us. But for a diabetic, there are only three options. You either abstain from all sweet-tasting foods forever, you use natural sweeteners like sugar or honey that shoot up our blood sugar, or you use an artificial sweetener. Some people (like my husband and me) wouldn't have the will power to totally eliminate sweets from our diet. I know that some people are able to do it, and my hat is certainly off to them, but not everyone is able to be that strong willed.

Since both my parents died from complications of diabetes and his Dad lost a leg because of it, things like real sugar and honey are totally out of the question for us. Some people who don't have diabetes or do have it and don't know how to control it, might say it is OK to eat sugar or honey occasionally. Since you probably don't have diabetes, you might be better able to understand where I am coming from if I were to say that it would be OK for you to occasionally eat gluten, soy and eggs. Just as those foods are never an option for you, natural sweeteners are never an option for my husband and me.

We aren't happy about using an artificial sweetener, but sometimes you have to go with the lesser of two evils.

[tex]

From my own personal experience - sucralose has not caused me to gain weight. I have been using it and eating low carb for over 4 years, and the result is I have lost 40 pounds without even trying to lose weight. (I do not attribute the weight loss to the sucralose, I contribute it to eating low carb.)

It has not caused my fasting blood sugar to be higher. My fasting is most often lower than it was 4 yrs. ago.

I can appreciate what you are saying, and I understand. But consider this:

In 4 years, we learn a lot about treating any medical condition, and we become much better at it, so it's not surprising that your weight and A1c would come down as you become more skilled, and more experienced at controlling those issues. Of course weight is not the issue that was the point of my original post — it's blood sugar levels. I'm certainly not trying to say that you or anyone else cannot improve your blood sugar levels in spite of using an artificial sweetener for 4 years. I just wonder what your lab results might be if you had not been using an artificial sweetener for 4 years.

And there are exceptions to every rule, so it's certainly possible that you might be the exception whose blood sugar does not respond to artificial sweeteners. After all, every clinical trial has a spectrum of results. There's no such thing as an outcome that absolutely applies to everyone. The best we can do is to bet on the side of the best odds.

And based on the shaky evidence that allowed most artificial sweeteners to obtain FDA approval in the first place, and the results of research studies such as the one that I posted about above, I would stick with the odds, and reluctantly use artificial sweeteners only if I felt that I had an absolutely need to do so.

The bottom line is that if it works (safely) for you, then there's probably no reason why you shouldn't be able to continue to use the product. That that doesn't say anything about the odds of anyone else being able to safely use it, or any other artificial sweeteners, because the odds are stacked against them.

There are members of this discussion board who eat foods that most of us could not eat without reacting, but that doesn't mean that eating those foods should be considered to be a practical recommendation for newbies to the board.

Tex

[JFR]

I have never been diagnosed with diabetes but there is plenty of it in my family including a grandmother who had both legs amputated and an aunt who had on 1 leg amputated. I eat no sweeteners at all, not natural sweeteners and not artificial sweeteners. I also eat very low carb. I have no doubt that I would be diagnosed as a type 2 diabetic if I ate a high carb diet. I strongly believe that the messages we give ourselves determine our behavior. If we tell ourselves we can't do something it becomes a self fulfilling prophecy. If instead we say to ourselves, I am capable of changing how I behave in order to become more healthy then that becomes possible. You certainly are not obligated to eliminate artificial sweeteners from your diet. Lots of people ingest them every day. But if what you would really prefer to do is eliminate them then I have no doubt that you can accomplish it. You really do get to choose.

Jean

[Whiplash]

Tex, you are right, we all do react differently to various foods, drugs and chemicals. I totally agree that everyone, especially newbies, should try to avoid all artificial sweeteners, and I certainly am not recommending that anyone use them.

Jean, congratulations on your strong willpower. Truth is, I could probably give up sweets if I had to, but I have been married for 51 years and I know for a fact that my husband wouldn't and won't even try. The only thing that keeps him in control of his blood sugar is the fact that I make sure all the food tastes just as good as it did before diabetes (hubby doesn't cook), and I usually have a little something sweet in the fridge for him to grab. If it wasn't for that, he would be sneaking around, eating the real thing every chance he got... wheat flour, sugar and all. (I read Wheat Belly.) And since I have to make the sweets anyway and since it is right there in the fridge...

Well, I'm 70 years old, so I'll hopefully be 6 feet under before all the bad effects of the sucralose fully kicks in.

[JFR]

Whiplash - I know how much harder it would be for me to eat the way I do if I lived with someone who ate differently. Seems like you are making the best choices you can for you and your husband given your circumstances. Thank you for explaining where you are coming from. It allows me to understand your choices better.

Jean

[carolm]

Jean, You think it would be harder to live with someone who can eat anything (and does) but I think you'd be surprised. I have no problem being around whatever my husband is eating. My GI doc once asked me " do you feel deprived?" and I spontaneously said "no, I just want to be well". I'll bet you'd be fine. I don't cheat.... I don't ever consider cheating and I just plain don't want to.
The benefits of sticking with the MC diet are too great.
What I miss is the spontaneity of being able to just take off and head out of town without having to plan what food to take.

[nerdhume]

Carol, I have no problem living with DH who eats most anything. I don't feel deprived, I just make sure I have options for snacks, etc.
Also, the longer we avoid carbs/sweets the less we crave them. After a while a banana tastes soooo much sweeter.

[JFR]

Carol - I just assumed that I would have trouble but I can certainly go places where others are eating and simply not eat anything and feel ok about it. And I can keep a pint of ice cream in my freezer for my granddaughter and not touch it. I have done such a good job of convincing myself that all the foods I avoid are really poison that I am not even tempted to indulge. I just don't want to be sick either. Maybe I could live with someone who ate differently although there is little chance of that happening. I like living alone.

Jean