Promoted with low calories or zero calories, artificial sweeteners are highly popular among weight watchers and diabetic patients. But the health experts warn about the dangers associated with these sweeteners, especially for diabetics.
Not many people know that the composition of these sweeteners is what is behind the increased rate of obesity and a high risk of diabetes in public. Despite being sold as ‘sugar-free’ and ‘for diabetic patients’ there is no way that these artificial sweeteners are healthy or fit for these people.
The research study on these zero-calorie sweeteners reveals that it has a reverse effect on its consumers. Instead of adding no sugar, they add plentiful of unwanted sugar to the body, without even making a person realize about it.
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Every person has a different response to the sugar and it is true for the artificial sweeteners as well. It tastes different than natural sugar which somehow tricks the body to eat more than normal and crave sweet things. As a result, these sweeteners end up increasing the blood glucose level to an extreme end, increasing the risk of a sugar spike, especially in a diabetic patient.
The popularity of these artificial sweeteners is high especially among diabetic patients but the sugar spike is something that they must avoid at all costs.
Previous studies on these artificial sweeteners suggest that it increases the risk of diabetes in people who are obese or overweight. It also proves that these unnatural sugars change the gut microflora, promoting glucose intolerance which invites a number of metabolic diseases as well as diabetes in later years.
Although these artificial sweeteners seem like a good option for weight watchers and many of them get successful to shed unwanted weight. However, switching to this sugar replacement has long-term side effects which may show up years later.
The benefit of artificial sweeteners in weight loss is not true for everyone. Obesity is the biggest risk factor for type 2 diabetes and these artificial sweeteners despite being approved by the FDA don’t ensure good health.
It is just a marketing strategy that makes people believe that they are consuming sugary foods and drinks with zero calories eventually leading to weight loss. But there is proven research on how these sweeteners induce overeating, obesity, and food cravings thus make it hard to lose weight. Not just diabetes, using them also increases the risk of heart diseases, stroke, inflammation, and high blood pressure.
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On the other side, the sugar alcohols are also sold as sugar-free or with zero added sugar and are a different product. These sugar alcohols are obtained from plant sources but most of them sold in the markets are made synthetically. The misleading labeling can lead a person to believe that they are plant-based, healthy, and sugar-free which is not true.
Using these sugar alcohols are also responsible for increasing blood sugar and carrying the same risks for diabetic patients as artificial sweeteners.
Most sugar alcohols are also synthetic, just like artificial sweeteners but these two are different products. Unlike sweeteners, sugar alcohols don’t need insulin to metabolize by the body and are less sweet in taste. Additionally, they have little side effects especially in the longer run, unlike artificial sweeteners.
Some research studies find sugar alcohol to be a better replacement of common sugar than artificial sweeteners. However, it is not of much help if a person is trying to lose weight. For weight loss, restricting daily sugar is a better strategy than using sugar alternatives.
