Artificial Sweeteners

There is no doubt that obesity is a serious problem that is causing health care costs to skyrocket, and is literally killing people. Obesity has been linked to heart disease, diabetes, and a multitude of health issues. It seems like almost daily that there are advertisements on television where companies are trying to market new diet and weight loss products. One of the most common products that we all can relate to is artificial sweeteners. I personally drink diet sodas, while I will not make any claims regarding weight loss I will admit that I have just grown to like the taste of diet soda over non-diet soda. I am going to discuss an article titled: "Artificial Sweeteners: Outwitting the Wisdom of the Body?" by Dr. Linda Bartoshuk. This article discusses the use of sugar and the artificial sweetener saccharin, and if there are any differences in weight loss or gain if artificial sweeteners are used in place of sugar. The article notes that saccharin was originally intended to be used in place of sugar during World Wars I and II because it was cheaper than sugar and there was also a shortage of sugar during this period in time. Saccharin was not used as a sugar substitute to aid in the weight loss until later. Once saccharin was introduced into soda or soft drinks I believe that the general population would assume that by using a sugar substitute that caused a reduction in calories, that one would naturally lose weight. However, when existing literature was reviewed in 1978, there was a

Artificial Sweeteners 2

conclusion made stating that "there is no evidence to show that artificial sweeteners are useful in weight reduction". Conversely, this article notes that in 1986, Stellman and Garfinkel analyzed data from an American Cancer Society study and found that weight gain was actually significantly greater in those who used artificial sweeteners. There was another study conducted later that year by English psychologist John Blundell who is an expert on appetite and satiety, and those results revealed that using artificial sweeteners could intensify ones appetite. These findings seem to be further supported by the diagram in figure 1 of this article, that shows the consumption data of non-diet soft drinks and diet soft drinks, and the rise in obesity that is appears to be directly associated with the consumption of diet soft drinks that are sweetened by artificial sweeteners. Bundell contends that there is a link in how our body's sensation of taste, that is evoked by food and the arrival of calories into our gastrointestinal (GI) tract are being disrupted. I understand this to mean that since sugar and other foods have calories that there is a link between the food calories (energy) that signals our GI tract giving us a feeling of satiety. Whereas, consuming an artificial sweetener without calories, or that is lower in calories breaks the link between