Short review
Merisant has created a completely new line of artificial sweeteners fortified with vitamins and minerals under the Equal Plus brand and available in three versions: Vitamin C and Zinc; B vitamins; antioxidant formula with vitamins C and E.
The products are marketed as a “good source” of these nutrients, and one package provides 10 percent of the RDA for added vitamins and minerals.
The addition of vitamins and minerals does not reverse the negative health effects of artificial sweeteners. Studies have shown that they increase the risk of obesity, type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, and related diseases.
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According to the latest statistics, nearly 40% of American adults, over 18% of teens, and almost 14% of children are now not only overweight but obese, and processed foods and sweetened drinks are clearly the driving factors.
Unfortunately, many people are mistaken when they think that artificially sweetened foods are healthy choices that reduce calorie intake. This is not at all the case.
Over the years, a growing body of research has shown that artificial sweeteners increase the risk of obesity and type 2 diabetes, perhaps even more so than sugar. A recent example is animal research presented at the Experimental Biology Conference in San Diego in 2018.
Promotional video:
It looks at how various sweeteners affect the use and storage of food in the body, and how they affect vascular function. Sugar and artificial sweeteners have been found to cause disturbances, albeit in different ways.
After a diet high in artificial sweeteners (aspartame or acesulfame potassium) or sugars (glucose or fructose) for three weeks, adverse effects were noted in all groups. All had increased blood lipids (fats), but artificial sweeteners also accumulated in the blood of the animals, which more severely damaged the lining of the blood vessels.
Newest Fad: Nutrient-Rich Artificial Sweeteners
Despite such evidence, the artificial sweetener market continues to thrive. Merisant launched a new no-calorie sweetener called Sugarly Sweet exclusively on Amazon at the end of January 2019, as reported by Food Navigator, and also created an all-new line of artificial sweeteners fortified with vitamins and minerals.
The fortified sweeteners are marketed under the Equal Plus brand and are available in three flavors: vitamin C and zinc, vitamins B3, B5 and B12, or vitamins C and E. The products are advertised as a “good source” of these nutrients, one bag of which provides 10 percent the recommended daily allowance for added vitamins and minerals.
Metabolic Effects of Zero Calorie Sweeteners
It is important to understand that although artificial sweeteners have no (or very few) calories, they are still metabolically active. As explained in a 2016 paper, The Metabolic Effects of Non-nutritive Sweeteners, many studies have linked them to an increased risk of obesity, insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, and metabolic syndrome. This article presents three mechanisms by which artificial sweeteners contribute to metabolic dysfunction:
- They disrupt conditioned reflexes that contribute to glucose control and energy homeostasis.
- They destroy the gut microbiota and cause glucose intolerance
- They interact with sweet-taste receptors expressed in the digestive system, which are involved in the absorption of glucose and trigger the secretion of insulin.
In addition to the sweet taste buds on your tongue, those in your gut also release signaling molecules into the bloodstream in response to the sweet taste, thereby forcing the pancreas to release insulin in preparation for the spike in glucose (which will happen if you eat sugar).
Artificial sweeteners are toxic to gut bacteria
Artificial sweeteners also have significantly different effects on the gut microbiome than sugar. While sugar is harmful because it feeds harmful microbes, artificial sweeteners are even worse because they are in principle toxic to gut bacteria.
In a 2008 study, sucralose (Splenda) reduced gut bacteria by as much as 50 percent, targeting specifically those with important health benefits. Just seven small sachets of Splenda may be enough to negatively affect the gut microbiome.
Aside from the myriad side effects associated with disturbed gut microbiomes, sucralose has also been linked to a wide range of other health effects. For a selection of studies, see Research Reveals Shocking Information About Splenda Side Effects, which also includes a long list of studies showing artificial sweeteners cause weight gain and metabolic disorders.
Later studies have confirmed and expanded on these findings, showing that all currently approved artificial sweeteners disrupt the gut microbiome. An animal study published in the journal Molecules in October 2018 found that aspartame, sucralose, saccharin, neotame, advantam, and acesulfame potassium-K caused DNA damage and interfered with the normal and healthy activity of gut bacteria.
While all six types of artificial sweeteners have been found to be toxic to gut bacteria, there are individual differences in the type and amount of damage they cause:
- Saccharin caused the most extensive damage, exhibiting cytotoxic and genotoxic effects, that is, it is toxic to cells and damages the genetic information in the cell (which can cause mutations).
- Neotam was the cause of metabolic disturbance in mice and also increased the concentration of several fatty acids, lipids and cholesterol. Several gut genes are also diminished in quantity with this sweetener.
- Aspartame and Acesulfame Potassium-K - the latter of which are commonly found in sports supplements, cause DNA damage
Artificial sweeteners can cause muscle breakdown
Other recent studies, which were already mentioned at the beginning of this article, have shown that, in addition to damaging blood vessels and increasing the risk of obesity and type 2 diabetes, artificial sweeteners also cause muscle breakdown.
As lead author and Ph. D. Brian Hoffman, assistant professor of biomedical engineering at Marquette University and Wisconsin College of Medicine, explained, “[Artificial] sweeteners are tricking the body.
And when your body isn't getting the energy it needs because it needs a little sugar to function properly, it potentially finds a source elsewhere.” Muscle is one such alternative source.
The neurobiology of food - the rewards and how artificial sweeteners trick your body into eating more
An article published in the Yale Journal of Biology and Medicine in 2010 focused specifically on the neurobiology of sugar cravings and the effects of artificial sweeteners in the context of the neurobiology of the award-winning food. As explained in this article:
"Diet" drinks are linked to an increased risk of stroke and heart attack
In related news, a recent observational study from the American Heart Association (AHA) found that compared to drinking one or fewer "diet" drinks per week, two or more artificially sweetened drinks per day increased the risk of stroke, heart attack, and early death in women. over 50 years old by 23, 29 and 16 percent, respectively.
The risk is especially high for women with no history of heart disease, those who are obese, and / or African American women. The study involved more than 81,700 women from the Women's Health Initiative observational study, a longitudinal health study of nearly 93,680 postmenopausal women between the ages of 50 and 79.
The average follow-up period was close to 12 years. According to the authors:
In an accompanying editorial article, “Artificial Sweeteners. The Real Risks,”Hannah Gardener, Assistant Scientist in the Department of Neuroscience at the University of Miami, and Dr. Mitchell Elkind suggest drinking pure water instead of non-nutritive sweetened drinks, as it is the safest, healthiest drink with low calories.
If you want flavor, simply squeeze a fresh lemon or lime into the mineral water. Whenever you need a little sweetener when cooking, baking, or drinking, be mindful of your choice.
Healthy sugar substitutes
The two best sugar substitutes are Stevia and Lo Han Guo (also spelled Lo Han Guo). Stevia, a very sweet herb sourced from the leaves of the stevia plant in South America, is sold as a supplement. It is perfectly safe in its natural form and can be used to sweeten most foods and drinks.
Lo Han Guo is similar to stevia, but this is my personal favorite. I use the vanilla scent of the Lakanto brand and it is a real delicacy. Lee Han fruit has been used as a sweetener for centuries and is about 200 times sweeter than sugar.
The third option is to use pure glucose, also known as dextrose. Glucose has 70 percent of the sweetness of sucrose, so you need a little more for a similar sweetness, so it is slightly more expensive than regular sugar.
However, it is good for your health as it contains no fructose at all. Unlike fructose, glucose can be used directly in every cell in your body, and as such is much safer than sugar.
Author: Dr. Mercola
