I get asked a lot about sweeteners. We all use them to enhance our food and for a very long time now, we've been substituting caloric sugars with artificial sweeteners. Although the intention of substituting sugar was a good one in respect to weight loss, these artificial sweeteners have been found to be more damaging than anyone could have imagined!!
Artificial sweeteners are man-made chemicals that have a sweet taste to them and are used in many diet foods we see on the grocery store shelves today. The primary two used in the U.S. are aspartame and sucralose. We often see them branded as Equal, Splenda and Nutrasweet.
Aspartame: This has been around a little longer and has had many links to health issues. Some of the symptoms associated with aspartame consumption include headaches, dizziness, mood changes, nausea and vomiting, abdominal pain and cramps, change in vision, diarrhea, seizures, memory loss and fatigue. Along with these symptoms, there are links between aspartame and Fibromyalgia, unexplainable depression, anxiety, MS, and various cancers. There has been a very big concern about the validity of some of the research done to confirm the safety of aspartame. Come to find out, most of the studies done that the government uses to claim this chemical safe for consumption were completed using funds from the aspartame industry. Well, I think you can guess, these results are going to be biased!!
Sucralose: This is a newer sweetener and even though the claims are that it's very close to sugar in its natural state, its NOTHING like it! This sweetener was discovered when an insecticide was being created! Uhhhhh, THAT doesn't seem like a good start!! Sucralose contains chlorine, a well known carcinogen. This is thought to be the most dangerous part of the chemical and causes reactions such as itching, swelling, heart palpitations, anxiety, mood swings and depression. Sucralose was also found to inhibit the absorption of some medications. Not good.
So even if this giant list of medical issues doesn't persuade you to put down the artificial sweeteners, maybe this little fact will. THEY INCREASE HUNGER!! I'm guessing most of us never used these sweeteners because they just taste so darn good, but rather because we were trying to save calories. But it has been found in multiple studies that these poisons actually make you more hungry and increase your cravings because although your brain in getting tricked into thinking you are eating sugar, your body isn't receiving the same message and its confused! Between water retention and decreased insulin sensitivity, your body becomes unnaturally out of whack and the pounds begin to creep on. Increased hunger + weight gain + increased risk of cancer!!?? NO THANK YOU. I think I will stick to the real deal!! AND SO SHOULD YOU!!
Ditch the artificial sweeteners and opt for natural sweeteners such as organic cane sugar, agave nectar, coconut sugar, sucanat, maple sugar flakes, rapadura sugar, date sugar, raw honey and natural stevia (plant-derived, non-processed). Life CAN be sweet, just stick with nature's natural sweeteners!
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