Natural vs. Artificial Sweeteners: What's Best for Weight Loss?

(Source XClear)

If you’re trying to lose weight, you’ll want to know how to keep the sweetness in your food while cutting out sugars that are the root cause of obesity, tooth decay, and coronary disease. Many dieters reach for artificial sweeteners, not realising that natural sweeteners like Stevia do the job far more effectively.

Here’s something the artificial sweetener manufacturers won’t tell you:

Artificial Sweeteners can put on weight and affect your health.

How can artificial sweeteners affect your weight?

You want to lose weight for health reasons, yet by using artificial sweeteners you’re eating substitutes that are packed with chemicals. Is that what the doctor ordered? These chemicals create a sweetener that stimulates insulin causing calories to turn to fat. According to the American Heart Association (AHA), in a report released in 2012, there is no conclusive evidence that even non-nutritive sweeteners help with weight loss. Aspartame, Saccharin, and Sucralose – and even Agave Nectar – are all produced using chemical processes.

How can artificial sweeteners affect your health?

There has been plenty of research into the negative effects of artificial sweeteners over the years. Here’s just some of what has been discovered:

• Aspartame contains phenylalanine, aspartic acid, and methanol. This chemical cocktail can lead to metabolic acidosis, leading to disease, with symptoms including headaches, vomiting, and even cancer. According to Dr Mercola, named the top ultimate wellness game changer by Huffington Post in 2009, aspartame is the most dangerous substance added to food today.
• Saccharin was found to be carcinogenic all the way back in the 1970’s. Despite objections from the Center for the Science in Public Interest (CSPI) that label has since been removed, but pregnant women are advised not to take it. Nutritionists also believe that saccharin is linked to eventual weight loss because of the way its chemicals work in the body.
• Sucralose was developed by scientists trying to produce a new insecticide. Is that what you want to sweeten your food with? In 2008, Duke University found that sucralose inhibits probiotic bacteria, harming a healthy digestive system.
• Agave Nectar, though it sounds natural, is mostly processed chemically. According to research published in the Journal of Hepatology in June 2008, this is the sweetener to use if you want a fatty liver.

Why you should use natural sweeteners

If you want to lose weight healthily, the natural sweeteners are the ideal aid.

Both Stevia and Xylitol are natural sweeteners which are perfect as sugar substitutes. They are also perfect for diabetics as they lower insulin levels.

Both Stevia and Xylitol are produced naturally from plants – none of those nasty chemicals that do so much damage. And they come in a number of forms that make them perfect for adding to drinks, sprinkling on cereal, or creating great home-baked goods.

Studies have shown that both these natural sweeteners help to reduce blood pressure, and research by Anton et al in 2010 showed that Stevia may be beneficial in fighting type-2 diabetes. Further research by Alvarez has shown the non-calorific qualities of Stevia - which contains zero carbohydrates, zero calories, and has a zero glycaemic index – improves blood sugar levels and glucose tolerance.

Xylitol has a reading of only 7 on the glycaemic index. It is used in dental products for its alkalinising qualities, which help it fight tooth decay by reducing bacterial growth caused by acids, and has been recommended by the American Dental Association. Xylitol has zero net carbohydrates, and only around half the calories of sugar (2.4 calories/ gram as against 4 calories/ gram).

What are you waiting for? The sooner you take the healthy weight loss option, the sooner you’ll be slimmer and fitter.