Artificial sweeteners: Any effect on blood sugar? (2024)

FAQs

Artificial sweeteners: Any effect on blood sugar? ›

Artificial sweeteners are many times sweeter than sugar. Because of this, it takes only a small amount of artificial sweeteners to sweeten foods. This is why foods made with artificial sweeteners may have fewer calories than those made with sugar. Sugar substitutes don't affect your blood sugar level.

Artificial sweeteners do not enter the blood stream and do not raise blood sugar directly. Instead, they stay in the digestive tract until they pass in the stool.

The body reacts to artificial sweeteners differently than it does to sugar — the healthy bacteria that live in the gut, for example, change when these compounds are around — and the consequences might be both surprising and unwelcome, especially for children.

In general, artificial sweeteners are safe in limited amounts for healthy people, including pregnant people. But limit or cut out sugar substitutes: If you're living with a rare genetic disease called phenylketonuria. Foods and drinks with aspartame can lead to serious health problems.

Although research is still ongoing, aspartame is often accused of contributing to many long-term health concerns. In fact, the International Agency for Research on Cancer has classified aspartame as a Group 2B carcinogen, meaning it can potentially cause cancer in humans.

Monk fruit extract

Monk fruit naturally contains mogrosides, a type of antioxidant responsible for the sweet taste of this treat. Researchers have found a way to extract this antioxidant to produce a sugar-free sweetener that does not contain calories and does not affect blood sugar levels.

Pancreatic cancer is one of these areas, owing to the link with dietary glucose consumption and regulation. Our study demonstrated no detectable impact of dietary aspartame with pancreatic acinar carcinoma risk, using a well-defined sensitized rodent model.

These alternatives to sugar, when consumed long term, do not serve to reduce body fat in either adults or children, the W.H.O. said in a recommendation, adding that continued consumption could increase the risk of Type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and mortality in adults.

Why was stevia banned? ›

Though stevia was initially banned in the U.S. because some studies suggested it may be linked to cancer, it's no longer prohibited. In fact, in 2008, stevia was granted GRAS status by the FDA - which stands for "Generally Recognized As Safe."

The worst of the worst culprits include aspartame (found in Equal and NutraSweet), sucralose (found in Splenda), and Saccharin (found in Sweet 'N Low). Many people who cut artificial sugars out of their diets report the improvement of many health problems including migraines, depression, IBS, weight gain, and more.

Honey is sweeter than granulated sugar, so you might use a smaller amount of honey for sugar in some recipes. But honey actually has slightly more carbohydrates and more calories a teaspoon than does granulated sugar. So any calories and carbohydrates you save will be minimal.

"The simple answer is that they don't affect it," says Ayyad. "If we were to open a packet of artificial sweetener and eat it, it wouldn't raise our blood sugar at all." He notes that no one does this of course. We're adding these artificial sweeteners to food or drink — our coffees, our teas, our baked goods.

Ingestion of these artificial sweeteners (AS) results in the release of insulin from pancreas which is mistaken for glucose (due to their sweet taste). This increases the levels of insulin in blood eventually leading to decreased receptor activity due to insulin resistance.

Stevia and monk fruit are both naturally derived from plants and some people feel they have a flavor very similar to regular sugar. The FDA says these sweeteners are “generally regarded as safe,” which means they are safe to use for their intended purpose.

Aspartame: The oldest and most studied sweetener, aspartame has zero grams of sugar and won't spike insulin levels after it's consumed.